The Great Awakening
by Squishie
Summary: After two thousands years, the gods are returning to their ancient glory but they have no idea how it happened or why. They must now regroup, rebuild and discover what happened to them to make sure it never happens again. Reviews appreciated!
1. Prologue

The walls of cold stone surrounded the large room like cave that absorbed any vibrant sounds of life and laughter. It had been quiet for centuries now, with only the muttering of a deep voice, chatter of creatures and footsteps pacing the bare ground. In the center of the room was an asymmetrical pairing: a throne of sorts, made of the same material of the ground that looked to grow out of it and an occupied bed. The frame of the bed, like its chair counter part, grew from underneath while the sheets themselves were a collection of bright colors and spattered petals. The still body lay atop the covers while the petals were obviously laid upon her from above. The years of motionless sleep had caused deep grooves in the sheets, as if she were slowly sinking over time, deeper and deeper into the bed until it would swallow her whole. Only half of her face was exposed but was still covered by long, wavy brown hair that looked carefully positioned over her shoulder, back and cheek.

The man who tended her unasked needs took both pride and pain in moving her hair every so often, trying to create an illusion of life. In this particular moment, he sat in the chair starting at her for longer than normal. The creatures and soft voices came and went, never rising above a certain volume for although he would take great pleasure to see her awake, he would not let them stir her with their presence. It left both his servants and himself in a state of abstract stress. Nine months passed.

Sighing, he placed his hands on the ends of the armrests and pushed himself into standing. He was a tall figure and would be of handsome look if he hadn't let her state affect him so. His eyes seemed darker, duller and hopeless - none of which he had ever been used to feeling. The lower half of his face was completely hidden behind unkempt hair that fell to his knees, though still of a robust brown like his curly hair atop his head. Scratching at his left cheek, he paced his way to the bed and brushed a clump of hair off her shoulder. The petals were dried and shriveled which only added to her saddening state. His eyes flashed a rare glimpse of familiar rage and his hand jerked into the air as the petals vanished. As if the departure of the pathetic petals had somehow harmed her, the woman's shoulder shifted and a quiet, painful groan rumbled in her chest. The man's eyes widened as he immediately dove to her side, placing one of his large hands on her bare skin and a smile erupted from his face; her skin was _warm_.

"Persephone?" his voice burst out loudly, or at least more than the room had been used to in thousands of years. His voice echoed against the walls and brought an ironic sense of life to the Underworld. His fingers gently squeezed her arm, hoping any sort of touch would hasten her pace. Again, her lips tried to part but the groan was caught in her chest and her eyebrows flickered. Eyes from all over the throne room seemed to appear and glow at the centered couple. Chatter begin to revive, beginning in a quiet tone as usual and increasing as the numbers did. Their Queen was alive.

"She's waking!" Hades boomed in excitement, his eyebrows lifting high on his forehead and his lips curling into a forgotten smile. His voice carried through the halls and though the cheers of the populace drowned it out quickly, the message had still spread quickly. Persephone herself flinched at the loudness of his voice and barely being able to lift her hand, she attempted to tell him to quiet down. He, in not understanding, took her hand, pressed it between both of his and lifted to kiss her fingertips. The corner of her mouth seemed to smile though it was unclear if due to the kiss or the misunderstanding, but the matter was of little importance. Her eyelids began to flutter, trying to open; what little light was in the throne room bothered her after her prolonged time in dreams. Her husband affectionately rubbed her hand to encourage her, impatient to have her as she once was so long ago. When her eyes finally broke through the lids and adjusted enough to the lighting, she was able to flash him the smallest of smiles.

"You look horrid," she quietly croaked, her dry throat giving her voice no justice. Simply the sound of her voice seemed to melt years off the man's face; his smile widened and his eyes closed, leaning his head forward to rest on her arm as if suddenly heavier. She squeezed his hand as best she could, which wasn't saying much and took in a slow, deep breath. "What happened?"


	2. Chapter One: The Underworld Lives

The throne room of the Underworld was only the beginning of the change that swept the deep caverns of the Earth. The black slate walls remained so but the tables were now covered in bright table cloths, the opposing fireplaces lit and burning wild and the bed the Queen had not stirred from in years was now transformed into a _klinai_, or a type of long flat for laying on. Around her were servants of the Underworld with food, questions and drink. As she reached out for a grape, Hades' large hand from behind grabbed it first and set it on her lips.

"I can eat, love," she quietly added through bites, though her small smile meant she appreciated it nonetheless. Sitting on the _klinai_ with her from behind, he kissed her hair just above her ear before standing up and walking to a purple cloth table piled with ancient scrolls, medieval and modern books as well as some newspapers sticking out occasionally. Picking another grape from an offered hand, she pushed it delicately between her lips as she eyed her husband, a faint look of worry forming.

"Hades," she tried to demand his answer but unable to do much herself, her voice reflected that weakness. "Please, tell me what's going on."

"I don't know," he answered bitterly, quite embarrassed to admit that after all these years. Pulling various clips from random centuries, the tall King turned to his wife and throne. "The mortals abandoned us long ago. You weren't the first to go, but once you fell into sleep, I didn't return to Olympus."

A frown twitched on Persephone's face. Knowing very well what she would have said at full strength, Hades seemed to recognize the silent chiding and sat in the throne, laying a few papers on the arm rest in front of her. Her eyes slowly moved down onto the closest one: a newsletter from the nineteenth century, from a country she didn't recognize but the words she could read: civil war. The others were much older and ranging in their country of origin. She shook her head slightly, not exactly understanding what she needed from these.

"How long.."

"Almost two thousand years," he quietly replied, stationing his eyes on the papers. "I used these to keep track of time."

Persephone closed her eyes and reached her hand up to her temple, like the information had given her a sudden headache. The room seemed to stand still, eyes pressed on her, fearful that any wrong move would send her back into dreams. When she released an audible sigh, shifting was heard once more and Hades himself seemed to breath again.

"The last thing I remember, you were in Olympus for a council," she narrated carefully, like pulling these memories was a delicate and difficult process. As she opened her eyes to look upon her husband, he gravely nodded. "Why?"

"It had already begun," he started as he leaned back into the throne, evidently preparing for a long story. "A lot of the minor gods were either found sleeping or had simply disappeared. Many of Aphrodite's children were first, causing her great worry. She had pushed my brother into calling the council, but we didn't accomplish much. Some didn't see any worry, like Ares, Hephaestus and Artemis. Hera retired early and …" As he paused, he seemed to glare at his own words, reflecting back on the day as if he had for the first time and now something had made sense.

"We have to go there," Persephone said in her loudest tone yet, pushing her arm off the rest to stand up, causing Hades to burst into action immediately.

"_You're_ not going anywhere," he firmly ordered as his hand landed on her shoulder.

"My mother is up there," she retorted quickly, putting her hand on his but not physically fighting him. "Our _family _is up there and if I wasn't the first to sleep I might not be the first to wake. In any case, we need to figure out how and why this happened, something _you_ did not do with your time –"

"I was worried," he grumbled under his breath.

The brunette woman smiled up at him, sympathetically rubbing his hand. "I know. But I'm awake now. And hiding down here isn't going to explain anything."

One of his thick eyebrows lifted up on his forehead as he looked down at his wife who smiled up at him. Shaking his head, he reached down and effortlessly pulled her into his arms. Lifting her up, he turned to the exit of the room. "You haven't changed at all. And you know – one of these days, I'm going to tell your mother it was your idea."

"Don't you dare!" Persephone cried with half a laugh in between, playfully trying to kick her legs.


	3. Chapter Two: Hearth and Home

Olympus was not the same as the pair had last seen it. The entrance was Athena's great design by Hephaestus' hand: a long hall of pillars, each designed to unfold into a defense mechanism should the palace be breached. The path was usually kempt grass, flowers and vines ready to attack at Demeter's call. But a few of the pillars had been used, it seemed and either were gone or in their true form on the ground. One was completely opened with its gears and innards on display. The grass was uneven and growing wild, though as Persephone looked to it, she noted it was still cut at times, just poorly. As they passed through the final two pillars, revealed to them was the mountaintop of Olympus and the palace they knew as home – in a sense.

In its heyday, it was a beautiful blend of gold and white pillars, arches and towers that stretched high above. The fires were always lit, burning in beautiful colors depending on the season or occasion and the gardens were tamed but free to grow where they wished. Vines would crawl up a pillar without harming its structure. Homes to gods were crafted to their pleasure and made a type of village surrounding the council chamber. The road winded through the homes before reaching the palace, as one could call it. Over the years, the place had lost its glow that made it so welcoming. Instead now the marble pillars and great buildings of Grecian architecture seemed to wish strangers would turn back. Still kept by their powers, nothing had decayed but the feeling was still disheartening. The homes were quiet, dead almost, and the fires were only lit in certain strategic places, as if to light the way. The pair were used to quiet and death in the Underworld, but not here on Olympus. Persephone's arms seemed to tighten over her husband's neck, uncomfortable with the changes.

As they passed a larger fire, Persephone looked over Hades' shoulder back at it and tapped on the back of his neck. He paused, glancing to her silently. It was strange how neither one wished to speak first, as if the silence of Olympus had been ordained and punishable. She frowned while in thought, determining how best to describe her concern.

"Who's lighting the fires?" she whispered into his ear. Giving her a look that seemed to think he didn't care much, he gave a shrug and continued walking. She promptly smacked the back of his head, causing him to groan a little louder than anticipated and turned around to face the fire. If Hades had prepared any statement about how little he cared about the fires, it was lost on him when they saw a woman standing behind the flames, faintly smiling at them.

"Hestia?" he asked loudly, the shock in his voice apparent; if Persephone had slept, he had assumed she would have as well. Thankfully such an insult didn't seem to faze the woman. She nodded as she sidestepped the bronze bowl that lit her presence, showing someone who bore the same ancient robes as the pair before them. Hestia looked no different besides her size; she has shrunk considerably, and the robes with her. Otherwise, her hair was in the ancient fashion, half covered by a veil as usual, and her eyes still bore the orange of the center of her flames. Her smile was weathered, but genuine.

"It's good to see you again, brother. Persephone," she nodded to the combined couple and breathed a small sigh of relief. "We are coming back."

"What happened here? What happened to us?" Persephone asked a bit calmer than originally she would have, as Hestia's presence was always warm and calming.

"The mortals grew tired of our ways. We were cruel, and vain to suppose they had no affect on us. We didn't value life enough and destroyed them as we pleased. When they gave up on us – when Rome fell, when they saw we didn't care to save them, we began to fade," Hestia narrated sadly, turning to the fire at her side and lifting her hand to raise its strength. The fire grew a few inches but died back to its original height just as quickly. Her eyes reflected sadness at this sign. "I must go. We are about. Some never slept and otherwise, I suppose, are waking up as we speak. But it is slow …childbirth like."

Persephone didn't like such a comparison as she grumbled wordlessly in her throat. Hades only grinned enough for her to see and be annoyed further. They said nothing as one of the eldest Olympians turned and walked further down the path, pointing to an empty bowl and trying to light another fire. They turned in the opposite direction of her, resuming their path towards the palace in hopes of finding someone with more time to explain and make more sense of things. As they neared the made arched doorway, Hades' eyes grew in surprise to see Hephaestus among a small army of mechanical creatures. He paused in step to stare as the ugly god happily barked out demands, sending one or two at a time away. It was clear that while Hestia kept the fires, he had kept the place otherwise as best as he could.

"You, back to the grass! If another blade is out of place, I'll have your gears!" he boomed loudly though his voice harbored more resentment. He was _enjoying_ the work. As the numbers dwindled around him, the orders were given out a little slower until he took his time to see who was left – and discovered the couple of the Underworld. "Hades? Persephone! You're awake!" he shouted in surprise and laughed, limping through the three creations in his way. When the third couldn't move in time, his large hand smacked it out of his way and upon nearing them, he through his hands into the air and laughed again – a laugh that seemed to fill and echo throughout the palace. "By the flames, you're awake! Welcome back, my dear!"

Now, under the circumstances, such a greeting should have been very welcomed and loved. To see anyone with such life would be drastically refreshing, but it was unsettling considering the source, for the pair never knew him to be happy nor energetic. Persephone's shocked face surely gave all that away and her mouth hung open very awkwardly, as her words were lost on her. Hades blinked a few times though it was much less obviously on him that he was surprised at the difference. Having been this way for quite some time, the blacksmith god hadn't assumed they wouldn't know him and his smile faded as he turned to Hades. "She _is_ all right, yes?"

"Oh –" Hades slipped out, turning to her and nodding. Persephone had to shake her head out of the moment and smile warmly, nodding to both her husband and friend.

"Yes, sorry, I'm just …"

"Happy to see you," Hades corrected carefully as he eyed her before looking upon Hephaestus once again, suddenly noticing he didn't have to look down on him much anymore: he had _grown_. "What is the news here?"

"Ah, we have much to discuss," the blacksmith god grinned and motioned to the palace. "Please, come in."


	4. Chapter Three: What Life continued

"I'm sure you're surprised," Hephaestus noted as if forgiving them for their silence as they approached the council chambers. Waving away the bots without jobs, he lumbered over the marble grounds that were – to his credit – clean and unchanged. Upon entrance to the circle of chairs that represented the Olympians, Hades noticed that Hephaestus had changed his own over the years, but respected the rest. Even his own symbolic chair was unchanged which solicited a nod to the man in gratitude before placing Persephone in it. She leaned into the back of it as she inspected the room as well; every detail unchanged as she remembered it.

"Shoo," Hephaestus grumbled to a cleaning robot that been tending Dionysus' chair before he sat in his own that sprung to life. From underneath his feet the chair released an attached ottoman for comfort and gears seemed to move to massage his massive back. He let out a loud, pleased sigh as the back of the chair leaned with him. Hades watched interested at how comfortable he looked and Persephone rolled her eyes. "So, what is it you know?"

"Not much," Persephone replied in annoyance, causing Hades to break the spell the chair had over him and sent her a half annoyed look. She pretended not to notice. "We know the time that has passed and that for whatever reason, I have awoken."

Hephaestus reached a hand to his chin, scratching as his shaved skin while staring up at the ceiling of the room.

"You're right: you don't know much."

Hades grunted.

"Well after you left, Hades, things took a turn for the worse. The first of us to go – I mean the council, my dear – set us all apart," he explained with a wave of his hand, sending the back of the chair in an upwards and more appropriate story telling position. Glancing over at them, he sighed, "Mother fell asleep almost as soon as you left."

"Hera?" Hades asked perplexed. "How –"

Shrugging, Hephaestus waved in a creature of his that brought water and wine for himself and guests. Taking the water only, he took a sip before continuing. "Zeus was undone. It was a blow to our confidence how much her sleep and lack of presence affected him and us. It wasn't very well understood how much she controlled order here and how much power she has. And though he often took others, Zeus loved her completely. After her, gods were falling asleep faster than we could realize. Hermes disappeared on duty, Apollo fell asleep during a council, Demeter –"

Persephone let out an audible gasp and put a hand to her mouth to stop what noise had already escaped. Though she feared to hear it, she could only assume the worst.

"I'm sorry," he corrected his tone to be more affectionate, having forgotten the strong bond between them. "But I don't think she sleeps because she has to – she fell just after hearing of your condition. It's possible…" he trailed off as he stared at the pale face across him. Almost instantly understanding his idea, her light brown eyes grew in size and she moved to stand up but weakly fell back into the chair. Hades' face twisted in displeasure at her continued physical state and gently pat her shoulder.

"We'll see her soon. But let's discuss this further first," he suggested quietly. Glancing back at Hephaestus, who seemed put off by her weakness as well, continued over her protests.

"Athena's sleep was another disturbing one. She went after Poseidon disappeared into the oceans and didn't respond to beckons. Without her guesses or attempts at solutions, the rest of us were left to watch us fall apart without much hope until it seemed only Hestia and myself lived. Not everyone sleeps, though," he added awkwardly at the end, his mouth twisting in displeasure at the topic he alluded to. The pair didn't need to provoke him further for he shook his head and continued. "Aphrodite was distraught over her children and … various others," he seemed to bite on the last two words.

Persephone glanced to her husband, awkwardly mouthing _Ares_.

"So she opted to live amongst the mortals. She said she wished to know why their love for us was gone. As far as I know, she still lives among them."

"Perhaps she works at reviving their love for us," Hades suggested, seeing a direct correlation between that fact and his wife's new state. The sense of hope in his voice seemed squashed at Hephaestus' shake of his head.

"They think we're myths. Stories the Greeks and Romans made up to pass time or to scare children. The same for any other society that named us – the Vikings, Egyptians, Sumerians, you know. The lot. If she works to remind them of us, she is fighting a losing battle," he said rather coldly as he lifted the cup to his lips and gulped down the rest of the cup. He threw the cup to the ground, causing a loud clank that alerted a few mechanicals to its presence; they raced into the chamber, fought over it briefly before carrying it off and disappearing. "Hestia has some wild ideas over how all this happened but she isn't wrong on one account: we are growing again."

"How did you survive?" Hades asked skeptically.

"How did _you_?" the blacksmith god retorted, obviously offended at the question. "Some of us weren't forsaken by the mortals. They can't help that they die and their souls go somewhere – even if they're wrong about where. Your presence will always be acknowledged and needed … _Lucifer_." He chuckled at his witty name for Hades who looked at him perplexed. Not phased that he was the only one that understood the joke, he leaned back in the chair once more. "The mortals have become smarter, more inventive over the years. They challenge me! It gives me great pleasure and strength. Without our interference, they have progress much further than even the Fates could have seen. I still breath because of their inventive natures."

"So you theorize," Hades corrected, uncomfortable with the idea of their nature being dependent on the mortals.

"How else would you think it?" Not bothered by Hades' comment, he adjusted his shoulders. "Aphrodite lives because mortals cannot help but love. Hestia's powers are connected with Olympus, not them, so she will never fade. And I –"

"We get it," Hades interrupted in annoyance, shaking his head. "It makes no sense. Spring continued yet Persephone slept. The harvest still continues, the sun rises and falls without Apollo and war still breeds in the spirits of Athena and Ares if not in name. The skies still darken for rain - wait, what happened to my brother? Where is Zeus?"

Hephaestus stared upwards in silent for a few seconds, as if he had been avoiding that topic the entire time. His jaws clenched, clearly visible due to his clean skin and the chair melted back to its normal position as if dictated to by his thoughts. Taking in a deep breath, he pushed himself to stand and motioned them to follow without looking at them.

"Come. But it won't be easy."


	5. Chapter Four: What Time has done

The door to Hera's chamber opened slowly by Hephaestus' hands and he stopped when the pair was just able to fit through. He stood there unmoved, unwilling to go into the dark room where obviously only a single light in there remained. It moved like a flame and the couple turned to Hephaestus who merely shook his head. Persephone was made highly uncomfortable by his actions but Hades proceeded anyway, giving her no choice as she was once against in his arms. The light of the room was to their right and he turned to face it, where a depressing scene greeted them.

Hera was laying dead-like on her back on a bed of ivory sheets, dressed in the robes Hades last saw her in. He frowned, recognizing the pain of the scene instantly as his eyes moved down to the broken man at the side of the bed, holding her hand. Persephone's hand moved over her mouth and Hades turned around to the door once again. Thankfully Hephaestus was still there, he passed his wife off to him an she looked at him extremely confused.

"Hades?" she asked quietly. "What are you …"

"I need to talk to him alone," he offered as an explanation but it wasn't as simple as that. No one needed to see this, to know how the mighty Zeus had crumbled at the bedside of his wife he hadn't been faithful with from the start. But most especially he didn't want Persephone to get any clue of what he had gone through during her similar condition. She began to protest but the door was shut on her and the sound of her voice was cut out. Keeping his hand on the door, he silently apologized before turning to the man who was covered in his own hair. It was painfully obvious he hadn't moved from this spot in all these years.

"Brother," Hades started carefully and took a step towards the bed.

"Maybe," the voice suddenly started up, causing the younger brother to pause in astonishment. He didn't expect to get a response so quickly. Zeus shook his head and pulled the hand he was holding closer to him. "Maybe … she must know I haven't cheated since... I haven't left her side. Maybe when we knows I won't… she'll wake up again."

The Lord of the Underworld froze, his jaw slightly open and his eyes in a horrific shock. This could not be coming from his brother's mouth; not from the brother who had once told him she was undesirable but a necessity. Not from the man who claimed it was his legitimate right and duty to father demigods and children for their progress and that of mortals. Not from the man who told his brother he valued Hercules more than any immortal child she could ever bear him. All of these thoughts were tempting to fill his mouth in an effort to rekindle the fatal pride Zeus had always carried with him. But it was all too inappropriate with Hera laying there, mimicking death. When close enough, Hades was able to put a hand on his shoulder and he kneeled down next to what looked like an ancient man.

"Go away, Hephaestus," Zeus grumbled.

"Zeus!" Hades roared, enraged that his brother was so hideously oblivious. Gripping his shoulder tightly, he shook the man while trying to press reality into him. "It's me!"

"DON'T –" came the familiar roar in return and the arm flung out to separate the connection between them, but his other hand continued to hold Hera's. "DON'T TOUCH HER!" he shouted with the girth and power in his voice he had used often when outraged at his children. Finally breaking his eyes away from Hera's face, Zeus turned to Hades with a hateful glare and sneer upon his face, which was difficult to see underneath his massive beard. Hades returned the glare; having only known their relationship to be about rage and jealously, he knew of no other way to shake him from this state.

"I wasn't going to, you pathetic mess!" Hades hissed back, sending his hand out to strike at his shoulder and push it back in defiance. "Of course she won't wake up! Why would she when you look worse than Geras! You pathetic, _worthless_ –"

"Shut up!" Zeus snapped, finally letting go of his wife's hand and standing to gain power over his brother. Reaching his hands out, he grabbed Hades' robes and twisted, pulling his brother to his feet and dragging them nose-to-nose. "How _dare_ you enter this room and insult me! I should tear you apart! I should –"

"Be welcomed back to life, my brother," Hades calmly interrupted, his cool and malicious grin sweeping across his face. He reached a hand out to place it back on Zeus' shoulder that twitched in an attempt to pull away but couldn't do so while still holding his younger brother so closely. His tensed eyebrows twitched as the father of the gods let the moment sink in and though his face showed no signs of dissipating rage, his grip on Hades began to loosen. Hades moved the hand from the shoulder to the cheek and pat it a little rougher than usual; insurance that Zeus would remain vibrant. When the eyebrows and face finally seemed to relax, the lightning god only then recognized with whom he was speaking.

"Hades?"

"Come on," he beckoned, attempting to pull his brother by the shoulder towards the door. "I have someone to show you."

But he was instantly met with resistance. The shoulder stiffened and his hand continued, sliding off and losing all advantage. Turning back to face his brother, he offered a confused look as his question.

"I won't leave her," he firmly stated, shaking his head to emphasize his point. "This – _that_ –" he motioned behind the door to what Hades assumed he meant as Olympus. "Only she can fix that. I can't do anything …she _is_ Olympus."

Hades groaned, "As much as I'm sure she would _love_ to hear that, your self pitying couldn't be more wrong. And she isn't sleeping because of your lacking faith and she won't wake because you've hardly left her side." The words flowed freely from his lips but the tone was not encouraging – more like chiding him for being wrong. It had always been difficult between the three contending brothers for as they shared such kin ties, they also shared large egos and it was not easy for Hades to try and stir his younger brother's ego back to proper. Knowing words would hardly suffice, he turned to the door and pulled it open much quicker than the kind blacksmith, who was still behind the door but arguing with Persephone over one of his inventions.

"I can walk – I don't _need_ this!" Persephone protested from the golden wheel chair as she lifted herself from its seat. Not used to company that spoke back, Hephaestus' face twisted in annoyance as he stood from behind and easily pushed her back into the chair, grumbling something before looking up at the opened door. From the darkness, Zeus was forced to squint into the bright lights of the hall and white marble. Putting a hand over his eyes, he stared at the figure that was so distant and foreign to him by now.

"Persephone?" he quietly questioned.

"..Zeus?" she offered back in a similar tone, finding his appearance quite astonishing. Hades placed his hand on Zeus' shoulder.

"Everyone is going to start waking," he explained to his brother.

"We hope," Hephaestus added cautiously, seemingly not overjoyed that Zeus was moving again.

"We _know_," a voice spoke out loud and clear, coupled with the sudden presence of a group down the hall.


	6. Chapter Five: Back Again

There, near the entrance of the hallway to the council chambers, stood three gods: Poseidon, Amphitrite and Hermes. The woman has her hands on her hips and stood at the frontline of the group, having been the one to speak up. The three looked remarkably unchanged by the events that devastated others. Poseidon was dressed rather comfortably, more like a retired man off the coast of a beach than a King of the Seas. His wore scandals with his feet covered in sand, blue swim trunks with white Hawaiian flowers and a white button down shirt with a few buttons loose. His white beard was well trimmed and the hair atop his head short. Amphitrite was less casual than her husband, but just as modern; she wore a tight sea green dress that was draped Grecian style from the left side of her body to the right and her matching pumps were decorated with an occasional shell. Hermes stuck out like a sore thumb in the trio as he was still wearing his traditional robes and winged shoes; however he was chewing gum rather loudly which seemed to indicate a familiarity with modern day. Poseidon took the first step forward as she eyed the group before him, taking his time over his brothers and stopping at Zeus.

"So the great Zeus _is_ alive," he teased with a grin, scratching his chin. "Barely."

A hand flew up over his massive beard and with a bitter look to the sea god, the beard disappeared into a clean shave upon his face.

"I take it Amphitrite has awaken," Zeus spoke up the loudest yet, seemingly motivated by embarrassment.

"Awaken?" she spoke up as she was mentioned like she wasn't present and crossed her arms, confused but more offended. "Why would you think I had slept?"

"You didn't answer our calls," Hephaestus replied with a sense of bitter attachment. "We assumed he was by your side."

"Ah," Poseidon realized, turning back to his wife who looked quite enraged by this assumption. Just as her mouth opened to curse them, his voice boomed over hers. "No, neither of us slept. We didn't answer because I thought you wished me to replace Zeus."

"And," the blacksmith pushed awkwardly, his face showing he was trying to piece together the information. "… you _didn't_ want that?"

"Oh my, no. _No_," he laughed at the second negation.

As a few eyes turned on Zeus who shrugged. "Can't blame him."

"Of course I can!" Hephaestus roared, throwing his arms into the air; his voice seemed to beckon his creations that began coming from all different doorways to see the fuss. "All of you left me to take care of this place alone! Both of you were too pathetic to move –" he began, motioning his hand in the direction of Zeus and Hades.

"Watch it –" Hades warned while Zeus seemed to growl.

"And **you** would rather hide in your oceans than do anything to help!"

"I think –" Hermes started up suddenly, entering the conversation with an extremely calm voice. As he walked forward, the side of his foot tapped one of the blacksmith's inventions. "You had plenty of help. And to be fair, they were watching over me."

The room was quite for a moment while they group let Hephaestus calm down and they all seemed to understand some basics. Any god in the traditional robes (excluding Hestia) had either fallen to the Sleep or not moved much since. The others, like the sea pair, had still functioned throughout the centuries and kept up with the time on Earth. Hermes' statement had alluded to his awakening and what had started out as a small group of survivors was turning into the Olympus they had known so long ago. The silence was undoubtedly awkward as each looked to each other for someone to start; the knowledge was scarce and spread out. They needed to talk, to gather their insights but no one was willing to bear the burden of demanding it nor remind Zeus that burden was his to bare. Fortunately, Hestia had entered the hallway and lit an empty torch near the group, stirring Zeus' thoughts and words into a cohesive action.

"Hestia, my sister, relight Olympus. Fan the flames in hopes of reminding our sleeping family of their duties," he nodded to her before glancing at the rest of the group. As he breathed in, his skin became more radiant and younger looking; he stood up straighter and his hair curled tighter and more polished looking. "Check on every council member. The minute they are all awake, we will hold a meeting."

"Ah, that will be a little more difficult than that," Hephaestus chuckled at how easy Zeus made it sound, but stopped laughing when the blue eyes turned on him. He cleared his throat, "Aphrodite is somewhere on Earth."

"As is Dionysus," Hestia slipped in quietly. When all eyes turned on her, she innocently panned their faces in moderate surprise, as if she hadn't said anything at all.

"Since when?" the blacksmith demanded, worried any mistakes or missing members would be blamed on him.

"No matter," Zeus decreed and shut the matter down with a wave of his hand. "Hermes, find them."

"Wait a minute –" Amphitrite interjected, her tone indicating cause for complaint. "He only just awoke and you –" she was cut just by Poseidon's elbow to her side.

"Right away," Hermes announced, flashing an annoyed glare to his defender as he left the hallway. In turn, she sneered at him and crossed her arms, mumbling about never inviting him back to their home. Zeus then moved down the hall to check on the others without another word to the group who slowly began to break up. Hephaestus was first, giving off orders to his inventions to aid Hermes or double time on the cleaning effort. Poseidon mocked his wife's anger, consequently making it worse and their voices dominated the hall in an argument as they walked towards the streets of Olympus. Hestia was maneuvering in and out of the rooms, lighting them up brighter than before. All that was left then was Hades and his chair-bound wife, who looked contemplative.

"I don't want to know," he joked with a small grin as he reached down to pick her from the chair.

"No –" she said more sternly which was followed by a look of apology. "Sorry. I don't mind the chair. It's just … it seems Hermes is at full strength."

Biting back the temptation to remind her he hadn't wanted to know, he simply stood back up and nodded. "I noticed." Their conversation was left to that and their thoughts as they too began to roam the halls and rooms of the other gods.


	7. Chapter Six: To Session

It didn't take long for the rest of the immortal world to stir and rise. That same day Ares had stirred very violently in his room. Apparently angry he had been one of the many and not of the saved few, he destroyed his room in rage while Hermes laughed, which further provoked him. Athena began roaming the halls to see what she had missed before alerting anyone she was now awake. Apollo and Artemis were a week after, waking at the same time and much to Artemis' dismay, her brother began telling her two thousands years worth of dreams. Demeter, as predicted by Hephaestus, had woken up when her daughter entered the room and promptly demanded Hades leave. Hera was the last to wake though she had apparently been a few days before anyone knew as she and Zeus had been locked in her room since. Word from Hermes was that Aphrodite was ready, but Dionysus was not; trusting their judgment, Zeus let the pair deal with how to get him back to Olympus. As the council was assembling that night, Hades was found in his chair alone, staring into the flames that were much grander now that they were all awake. By the time Athena entered, he had been brooding for several hours.

"Alone, Hades?" she questioned rather bluntly, knowing well that there was good reason Persephone was not by his side.

"Demeter," he grumbled without moving much. "That woman refuses to see me or part with my wife."

"Her daughter," the brunette corrected.

"My _wife_," he snapped back immediately, glaring at Athena coldly. In reply, the goddess only shrugged and sat in her chair, letting her palms rub on the hand rests to remember the feel of it.

"I suppose my letters were left untouched and not delivered," she began suddenly, causing Hades to pull away from his angry thoughts of Demeter. Unaware she had written any letters, the Lord of the Underworld was left to silence and no answer. Understanding the silence full well, the woman nodded. Before he could ask what she meant by that, the entrance was flooded by figures all hovering around a very loud and very drunk Dionysus. To his right was Hermes, dressed in jeans and a button down shirt with only one button still keeping the shirt semi-closed. To his left was Aphrodite in what appeared to be a shirt but was stretched into a dress, very tall heels and dark make-up around her eyes. Otherwise the others had appeared in their walk to the council, such as Aphrodite's son, Eros.

"WHERE'S THE MUSIC?" the drunken god demanded, throwing an arm into the air which would've been gladly holding more liquor. Turning his face within centimeters of Aphrodite's, he continued to shout, making her wince. "What was that SONG? That SONG … that I LOVED!"

"You loved a lot songs tonight," she answered remotely polite but dripping with annoyance. The god was not light and it appeared despite having strong Hermes on his right, he chose to lean on Aphrodite to his left. She shifted her shoulder before glancing to the pair in the room for help. Hades pretended to not be looking at the scene while Athena leaned forward, squinting at the scene, quietly judging them for not having made a better plan to get him home.

"I think …" he began with a swing of his arm off of Hermes, but the messenger god quickly grabbed the arm back and draped it over his shoulder. "It was … 'bout music.. I mean, dance .. phones!" Dionysus tried to piece together his night (more specifically that one song) while Hermes dragged him to his chair.

"This isn't going to work," Aphrodite mumbled under her breath to him.

"What are you talking about?" Hermes grinned. "It already has."

"GAGA!" Dionysus shouted at the top of his lungs as he collapsed into his chair.

"What _is_ this racket?" came a very loud and familiar maternal voice, which caused all the helpers to flee the scene; all but the drunk god turned to see Hera at the entrance who was trailed by the rest of the council. Her eyes widened at the scene in front of her, pointing to Aphrodite and Hermes first. "Clean up. That is not appropriate." While Hermes changed without missing a beat, Aphrodite glared at the woman for not recognizing their job was done (nor for being thanked). Ignoring her, Hera stepped down the marble towards her chair and instead of dealing with Dionysus, she looked over her shoulder at Zeus. "_Your_ son is drunk."

Zeus' eyes narrowed a bit at his wife instinctively whenever she pointed out the children that weren't theirs, but he held his tongue as he sat in his own chair, not intending to do much about Dionysus. His presence was enough, passed out or not. After Hera and Zeus were the twins, Artemis and Apollo, who looked upon the scene with quite differing; Apollo grinned as he gave Hermes a thumbs up while Artemis shook her head in disappointment. Behind them walked in Ares who was still harboring an angry look upon his face until he realized Aphrodite was finally here; briefly smiling at her, he was forced to turn at Hephaestus, who bumped his arm and glared up at the taller god. The two stared at each other for a moment before separating on either sides of the circle. Poseidon and Demeter entered last together and as the sea god went to his seat without quarrel, Demeter deliberately avoided looking at Hades. When she took her seat, Hestia entered from outside and shut the large doors behind her to cut them off from the other gods of Olympus. Zeus nodded to her as she took her seat next to the flames.

"Waittaminute …" Dionysus mumbled as he recognized the pattern of the leg of his chair. His finger reached out to rub the grapes and his eyes widened. Lifting his head to look at Hermes, he glared at him and moved to get out of the chair, but was stuck. "You ... t-tricked me!"

"Dionysus!" Zeus' voice boomed for the first time in two thousands years; the walls seemed to shake and the thunder outside rumbled in agreement. Hermes lent the drunken god a crafty smile before turning to Zeus as all others had done. Despite the room spinning, Dionysus was able to burp a small reply but otherwise keep his mouth shut. He nodded in affirmation that he understood to shut up and slowly started to maneuver in the chair to sit up correctly – which was failing.

"I call this council to session," he stated very monotonously, the same he did every time they gathered. The words themselves had an officiating power that seemed to lock them in the room and cause them all to sit up straighter. The attire was always strictly formal, modest, peaceful and - seeing as modern clothes were now an issue - ancient Greek. The list had always come from Hera and targeted specific gods: Aphrodite had a bad habit of not covering herself, which did not sit well with her. Modesty was imposed very early on. After a few disputes with weapons, specifically from Ares and Poseidon, meant 'peaceful' was a polite way of saying no weapons or battle gear – a law that Athena didn't appreciate. Outside of Dionysus, everyone had followed the rules perfectly but by the looks that Hera was sending him, he was going to be punished for it later. Hephaestus had been careful not to change the order of seats; starting at Zeus' right was Hera, then Hephaestus, Demeter, Dionysus (still struggling), Hermes, Hades, Aphrodite, Ares, Poseidon, Artemis, Apollo and Athena who sat to his left, all forming a circle. Demeter was the first to make a noise, letting out a satisfied sigh with no words to explain. Briefly looking over the circle, Zeus formed a fist in his right hand.

"The mortals did this."

The first words of the session did not sit well at all. Ares sat forward with a sharp _what?_ escaping his lips as Poseidon shook his head and mumbled rather loudly. Apollo tried to talk over the rumbling about the prophecies he endured over the centuries, to which Artemis scolded him that this wasn't the time. Dionysus began to ramble loudly just to join in the noise and Demeter covered half her face with her hand. Hermes scratched his chin while mumbling, "Great start."

"I believe what he was trying to say," Athena spoke up loudly, assembling a silence rather quickly. "was that both our sleep and waking directly correlates with the mortal world. What and how that is … obviously is painfully unclear. But we cannot deny –"

"Bullshit!" Ares shouted while raising his fist to the air and slamming it back down onto his chair. "_We_ made _them_, _we_ control _them_! This was the work of the Titans or some new gods!"

"The Titans haven't escaped Ares," Hades growled lowly, unappreciative of any hint that he wasn't keeping them under control.

"But the selection of sleep was so arbitrary," Artemis said as she ignored the bubbling conflict. "And while we all gained strength quickly, the same cannot be said for other gods and goddesses."

A silence washed over the group once again as they all reflected on that statement. It was no secret that they were up and standing within minutes of waking, but everyone else was bedridden for much longer. The homes were lit with life but the streets were still void of activity. It was as if their strength had been drained during the Great Sleep and were unable to adjust.

"The selection was not arbitrary," Hephaestus began carefully, knowing he was treading light when it came to this subject. "The mortals didn't forget us completely: we are figures of speech or old stories to teach their children. But some of us lived off of the spirits of the mortals, not their prayers."

"A theory no doubt given time and thought," Poseidon challenged. "but that also grants them awareness and control over us that I don't believe they have. They move by air now more than water and yet none of my family fell to the Sleep."

"Regardless, Poseidon, it's a valid argument," Athena asserted quickly, worried less of an argument but rather sidetracking. "It's the only one that currently makes any sense. What does not, however, is our awakening. As far as I can tell, nothing has changed. So why now?"

"So we can remind them," Ares announced plainly, having thought of this since he woke up. "They need to know who we are again and return to things as they once were."

"No!" The opposition to Ares came from the most unusual source, even enough to surprise him: Aphrodite. She was sitting forward with her head turned to the left to look at him directly, receiving a surprised look before it turned into a glare. Unwilling to budge on her position for his sake, she looked back onto the group. "The mortals are much better without our interference. They have started a revolution of free love –" The statement provoked a few groans but she continued, "They govern themselves with fairness and –"

"Are we not fair?" Zeus snapped immediately.

"Hardly!" Aphrodite continued as she stood to her feet, passionate about the topic.

"Sit down," Hera governed calmly from her chair.

"You loved them once, so much that you would interfere on their behalf sometimes and it was always to protect them from _us_," she specifically put a hand on her own chest as she assumed the responsibility of everyone. "When they are left to themselves, these situations don't happen. They don't _need_ demigods to save them or monsters to keep them in line."

"Aphrodite, sit. Down," Hera emphasized once more and this time, the goddess listened begrudgingly. She sat at the edge of her chair as if ready to stand again when the timing was right. Surprisingly, it was Hera who cleared her throat. "While it is important to understand how this happened to us, I believe we are needlessly dividing ourselves on menial topics. The mortals are not 'better off' without us for they have started wars that stretch the globe, caused pain and destruction in other countries, slaughtered their own by the thousands and stand to tear Mother Earth apart each day. At least they have no one to blame but themselves for when we ran things, wars were often in the name of our amusement. But in the end, they were happy to blame us and we were happy to take that blame. But I fear their complicated world may be beyond our intervention."

It was then Apollo gave his sister a look, one Artemis was plainly not happy to receive and shook her head, waving her hand to toss the matter out in the open. "If you must," she muttered.

"I don't know what any of you experienced in your sleep," he started quietly, glancing to those he knew had slept as well as him. "But I dreamed all these years. I can't say if I saw what was currently happening or what would happen, but it's clear the prophecies I saw were events on Earth. The last one before I woke up was a dream of the mortals killing themselves in final, great war that will break out and a cloud will take them down by the millions. This must be why we're here: we are here to save them."


	8. Chapter Seven: Must We Act?

"Ahhh," Ares stood with his arms open wide, a large smile on his face that didn't sit well with the others. "Of _course_. When they have no need of us, we sleep until their demise is near. I say let them die! Let's see this bloodshed and create new mortals when they've died!"

Hades grumbled something about overcrowding that was only heard by Aphrodite and Hermes on his sides. Unfortunately between Apollo and Ares, the room was now divided; some were likely to side with Ares, not likely to help just for the sake of keeping them while others starting arguing the consequences of their deaths. Artemis began chiding Apollo for making such large assumptions and decrees and Hestia poked at the fire quietly. When Zeus motioned to his sister of the hearth, she nodded and raised her palms to the ceiling and the flames listened; they burst into a large roar and the flames burst up to the ceiling in a grandiose display. When the voices stopped, the fire fell back down to its moderate size and Hestia poked at it once again, acting like nothing had changed. When Zeus was able to see everyone again, he noted Ares was already sitting and Dionysus had finally sat up, holding his head in pain.

"If I may, Zeus?" Demeter asked and when he gave his blessing, she looked back out to the rest. "If we did sleep because of them, their death could mean our own. We cannot afford to let them kill each other."

"We existed long before them, Demeter," Poseidon chided, shaking his head as if he were disappointed she had forgotten. "And we will be here long after them."

"_We_ might," Hades offered looking to his brother of the seas. "Others might not be so lucky."

Those that had slept all seemed to frown simultaneously; Aphrodite shifted uncomfortably, unable to imagine a world without the mortals nor those around her. Suddenly Ares' idea didn't seem to sit well with him and he looked to Zeus who stared into the flames in silence. Artemis turned to her sister that most understood her, Athena and they shared a worried look. The two often were able to bounce ideas off of each other and when both were silent, worrying increased. Hera's hand lifted off the side of the chair and over onto Zeus' arm, pulling his eyes from the fire and the two exchanged a silent conversation of the eyes. Zeus nodded to her and received a nod in exchange before taking a deep breath.

"We will investigate this more before taking action. I have no doubts of your prophecies, Apollo," he quickly inserted before the sun god could take any offense. "But this is not something to take lightly."

Ares shook his head in objection before slamming his fist on the arm of his chair. "So what? We just wait until we all sleep again?" His outburst solicited a glare from both Athena and Artemis who have always been vehemently loyal to their father. Though both would quickly jump to his aid, they had no need as the thunder overhead spoke for him. Turning their eyes back to him, he was glaring at his son most intensely.

"I will _not_ have my decision questioned, Ares," he threatened rather calmly despite the enraged look on his face and tense demeanor. The two stared at each other for what felt much longer until Ares finally averted his eyes in submission and nodded slightly. At this, Zeus relaxed and looked about the room. "Artemis, you will accompany Apollo to determine the state of affairs on Earth. Ares and Athena, seek out those building and ready for war. Hermes, contact all Earth bound gods and creatures. We need to know who is still around." Hermes sighed quietly, not hiding his annoyance with such a large task. Zeus' eyes flinched slightly, as if slightly glaring but the look was gone as he turned to Poseidon. "Separate all opposing ships. I want no accidents, no fights, nothing that could provoke them. Hephaestus, I need a comprehensive list of the weapons the mortals have created and to what degree they could destroy themselves."

As he paused in his orders, he eyed the rest that had no direct orders. Neither Demeter nor Hades looked terribly surprised, Aphrodite was staring off into the fire and Dionysus was apparently asleep.

"Dionysus!" Hera snapped in her loudest voice, which had little volume comparison to Zeus' but no less power. The hung over god jumped in his chair, grasping the arms of the chair and his eyes wide with fear. Looking around for some sign of help and receiving very little, he finally contacted eyes with Hera who was glaring at him. "You're _not_ to leave Olympus, drink or party. Is that clear?"

He winced at each word as if she were slapping him across the face and though he was in pain due to the decree, it was also the sound of her voice that caused his head to pound. Nodding with a groan, he pushed his fingers to his temple and mumbled, "Yeah, I got it."

"Good," she said a little softer, but still with a snap. Now turning her head to Aphrodite, she took in a deep breath, as if what she was going to ask was against her will. "Aphrodite … how many children have you had on Earth?"

The goddess blinked as she continued to stare into the fire and her eyes widened a little bit; it was quite obvious she hadn't expected this subject to come up. Looking up from the fire, her jaw opened very slightly and, not very charismatically, her initial reaction spilled out, "Uhh.."

Hephaestus rolled his eyes, Ares growled and Hermes laughed. The flourish of sudden reaction caused Hera's eyes to jump around in slight glares, trying to keep things in line without words. Aphrodite turned to Hermes with a wink as she regained her composure and sat up a little more straight. "Did you mean currently living or all together?"

Artemis dipped her head down and put her hand over her eyes, probably muttering something to herself by the look Apollo gave her. Poseidon burst out into a hearty laugh that filled the room and echoed, causing others to follow and Aphrodite to smile even more. The few that were not amused remained so, getting more agitated as the laughing increased and even Hades cracked a grin. Hera took in a deep breath, looking to Hestia once again who had kept neutral throughout the scene and she raised her hands, causing the roar of the flames to silence the crowd again. Zeus took this moment to crack his own grin quickly, which Athena happened to notice and cleared her throat loudly. As the fire calmed down, the council was back to a more neutral setting, minus Aphrodite's still beaming face. Hera's face became a little darker.

"_Currently_," Hera specified in a tone that indicated shortened patience.

"A few," she replied vaguely, shrugging her shoulders as if it didn't matter.

"We will have a list of who and where they are in case they incite war," Hera demanded. Ares let out a single, loud laugh while Aphrodite's nose curled up in annoyance at Hera's distrust in her children.

"Children of Aphrodite? Incite _war_?" he asked rhetorically, letting the words sink in a little more before laughing again.

"Hey!" Aphrodite suddenly became defense over the topic and turned to face Ares, pointing a finger at him. "Love starts many wars! Remember _Troy_?"

"REMEMBER? I was THERE –"

"Stop," Zeus sighed from behind his hand sounding like an exhausted father after a long day at work. Rubbing his temples with his middle finger and thumb, he shook his head and took in a deep breath. Aphrodite faced toward in her chair and crossed her arms defensively, huffing out a little air of annoyance. Ares glared at her, waiting for her to look at him and when she didn't, he huffed in return and faced forward. Opening his eyes to look over his hand at the pair, he shook his head again as he sat up straight. "You have your tasks. Council is finished." He stood her first as he pulled his robes off the chair behind him and looked to his brother, raising his chin. "Hades, a private word."

Author's note: Thank you so much for the reviews. :) It is very nice to know that people read and enjoy your work. I would like to mention that I put a strong emphasis on relationships and characters, rather than storyline, so if you're in this with me, you're in it for the long haul. I'll try to come up with one-shots and side short stories in the meantime as well. Once again, thank you!


	9. Chapter Eight: Cursed

As Hades followed his brother into his room, his eyes couldn't help but wander up: there was no visible ceiling to Zeus' room. The various golden pillars continued upwards and disappeared amongst the clouds that roamed high above. The bed was of grandiose nature with enough space for several and sheets so light they almost looked transparent. For the most part, his brother's room was a calm and peaceful place amongst the clouds without much evidence of his duties. It was no surprise that this was where he often hid when annoyed or didn't wish to be bothered. As the door closed behind his brother, Zeus turned to the lord of the Underworld and paused, carefully considering if this was the right choice or not. Taking in a deep breath, he nodded stiffly and began, "I need you to speak with your Sisters."

An eyebrow rose high on Hades' forehead in a mixture of surprise and skepticism. His "sisters" were not those that one would normally think of; at least none in the council chambers. His "sisters" were not officially related to him – not at least openly, since their parents were unknown. Zeus was talking about the Moirae, or the Fates, who spun the lives of mortals, determined their lengths and fates and cut their souls to the deep caverns underground. They were a terrible trio that took pleasure in the misfortune of immortals and the untimely deaths of mortals. They found humor in taking a life just as they had an epiphany, confessed their love or heard an earth-shattering secret. They were most often at odds with the gods and used the mortals to seek out revenge or teach lessons, claiming 'fate' had the hand; they always claimed that they did not control fate but could only watch it and protect it, but everyone knew it was plainly untrue. Whenever offended or angry with a god, a mortal close to them suffered early death or a long painful life. The Moirae chose long ago to live in the Underworld to which most assumed was because of their close affiliation with death but they also seemed to love Hades, something he always attributed to his respect of death. He had started to affectionately call them his sisters, mostly to get them on his side, but the term had caught on and now everyone referred to them as his sisters – something he didn't particularly like.

Hades took in a deep breath and brought his arms up, crossing them over his chest defensively. He shook his head slightly as he was the first the break eye contact and look up to the clouds once again as he thought his words through slowly.

"We were not kind to each other in our last meeting," he admitted quietly, remembering their visit to him after Persephone had fallen asleep. He had been enraged that they didn't warn him and try to help the situation. As they always did, they claimed fate was ultimate and unchangeable to which he challenged them and denied them in Persephone's presence. He had not seen nor heard from them since that day. Looking back down to Zeus, he pushed his lips together as if refusing to explain further.

"We _need_ them," the thunder god pressed. "Their sight into the future in invaluable and … if they can change things –"

"They won't," Hades grumbled, shaking his head. "They didn't help us all these years. Why would anything change now?"

"Just try." Zeus denied further conversation with a certain look; a look that always meant he was done discussing it and his word was final. Few challenged this look, minus Ares every so often, as it meant horrible trouble and pain to do so. Though Hades had always been the most calm of his brothers, the look was something he never appreciated – it felt like a father telling a child he was stupid for questioning him. Hades glared at his brother in return, unwilling to vocally challenge him but wanting to make sure he knew of his distaste of the subject matter and the _look_. Turning around, he briefly remembered how heavy the door was to Zeus' room and made sure to take his time opening it; he was sure it was to discourage people from entering unannounced, but in this moment, he felt like it was to prevent Hades from slamming it – which he would have done if capable.

Turning down the hall, he stormed passed several weakened gods and goddesses who had been lingering around Zeus' room to find out more information. As Hermes' was already gone, the news spread more like rumors rather than fact and they relied on spying to gather their information until someone spoke up or he returned. Continuing passed Hebe who had clearly already adjusted to modern day fashion, Hades gave her a brief second glance before turning back and seeing Persephone directly in front of him. His eyes widened in shock for a moment, mainly because her arms were crossed and she didn't have the nicest look on her face. He managed to compose himself within seconds and put a smile on his face, setting a hand on shoulder.

"I must return," he stated simply, not looking to engage her in whatever topic had caused her displeasure. She raised an eyebrow, acknowledging that he ignored her but she seemed to move on quickly. Lifting her hand on top of his own, she smiled back at him.

"I'm coming with," she stated in a pleased, matter-of-fact manner. The dark eyes of the Lord of the Underworld looked at her skeptically, turning his head to the side as he squinted.

"But it's summer," he started a bit confused as she lifted a finger up to his lips and his look of confusion grew as her smile widened.

"I have mother's permission … and a surprise," she whispered quietly as she turned to look around the hall. Apparently the surprise was only meant for them to hear for she slipped into her mother's room and beckoned him in. Now, Hades was skeptical for many different reasons: the first was that Demeter had hated him since Persephone joined him in the Underworld. The entire fiasco had been due to their attempt to spare her feelings and she threatened to destroy mankind in the process. He had thus never set foot in her room, barely spoke to her whenever he visited Olympus and hadn't been looked at by Demeter since she had awoken. Looking around like his wife had, seeking the trap that was being set, he very slowly entered the stately room. It reminded him of Hera's, where the pillars were ivory and large, but not over bearing. The bed was made neatly and the furniture all matched the off-white and gold trimmed theme. As his wife shut the door behind him, Hades gazed around the room to soak it in, believing this would be the only time he would ever be in here.

"My mother thinks we need to reintroduce ourselves to mankind and grow an army," Persephone started softly as she moved around her husband, looking up at him with a smile that indicated there was more to this. "Just in case."

"Okay…" he hesitated, waiting for more information since he was clearly lost.

"So …" she paused, elongated the word as if to add suspense. "Mother has lifted her curse of infertility on us."

There was a large pause as Hades simply blinked down at his smiling wife, processing what this meant. His eyebrows furrowed as an annoyed look on his face washed over.

"She cursed us?" he roared, quite offended that she would have gone that far over something so menial. His eyes wandered the room as if Demeter had been listening in and was going to appear any second. Persephone's smile faded instantaneously when he erupted in anger and she sighed, looking off to the side half-annoyed. Muttering something to herself, she put her hand on the door and started to open it.

"Oh –" Hades interrupted as he spun to face her, realizing his reaction was quite inappropriate. Unfortunately, he had gotten quite used to them not having any children and the prospect of starting was a surprise. The Dark Queen paused after hearing his change in tone and looked over her shoulder, hopeful this reaction would be much more amiable. Unfortunately, Hades did nothing.

"Oh you're _useless_!" she groaned and stormed out of the room, shadowed by a very stunned husband.


	10. Chapter Nine: Gemini

"What was I supposed to do?" Apollo asked exasperated over the topic, letting his arms fall to his sides as his twin spun around to face him. The fact that they were twins was quite funny given the mortal sense of twins, for they didn't look anything like each other. His eyes were bright yellow, a startling sight that many women on Earth had either fallen for or fled from; Artemis' were silver, a hint darker than white as not to look like she had no color at all. Her hair was brown, straight and always tied back so not to disturb her vision; his was blonde, wavy and almost always in the way of his face. Even down to their personalities, they were so opposing that they seemed enemies. She was stoic and respectable by looks and always formal and presentable. She valued hunting in dirt and mess, but never brought that to Olympus, as it was not appropriate. Apollo was always clean, as he didn't like the dirt of the ground presented on his clothes, but he was aloof and lazy looking. He often leaned, hummed to himself or others and was overall "friendly", as he put it, but informal seemed more accurate. Despite their differences and bickering, the two were loyal to each other by far than any other immortal. She may disagree with her brother, but she would stand by him regardless – but not without telling him he was wrong along the way.

"You have _no_ idea if those dreams were prophecies or not," she snapped back to him, clearly annoyed but her voice was in control and oddly calm. "You have _always_ dreamed, brother and have never had any clue if they are true or not."

"You know they are!" he yelled as he stepped forward, pointing a finger to emphasize just at whom he was yelling. "You're just mad you didn't listen to my warning about the Sleep!"

Artemis' eyes narrowed as he had hit a sore spot between them, something they had been arguing about yet avoiding since they awoke. She lifted her finger to point back at him and it froze there, her mind racing with things to say to him as she thought them through more carefully than he did for her.

"That prophecy was obscure. Your dreams were not specific enough to incite a panic," Artemis replied much quieter, keeping her posture in a tough stance as she verbally was backing down. "And if you believed in it so much, you could have told someone else."

"I did," he retorted quickly but something in his voice hinted at sadness. He closed his eyes for a moment, as if reliving the story and shook his head, turning away from his sister. "I told Athena. She took the information and did nothing, just as _you_ did. I should have told someone that would have _believed_ me."

Scratching the mess of curls on top of his head, he stared at the ground as his mind raced. He had once cursed a mortal who refused him, even after he promised the gift of prophecy in exchange for her love. He gave that gift but with it the curse that no one would believe her and he was now having guilt over the idea of it, as he felt he was living it now. Apollo and Artemis had always had differences over prophecies, but they had never involved each other – just mortals. Now that they had turned to them, the reception of prophecies had changed dramatically.

Artemis' face didn't change when her brother changed tactics. She knew better than to allow his attempts to guilt her change the topic at hand, but she had paused due to the new information. She knew that Athena's position on prophecies was much worse than hers – the woman didn't like the idea of not controlling her own situations – but it was a shock to hear she had done nothing. Slowly the brunette reached a hand out and placed it on her brother's shoulder, taking in a slow, deep breath before sighing. 

"We can't change that now... but instead look to making sure they believe you now," she stated quietly as she stared at the ground herself. Apologies had never been her strong point and her brother knew that was the best he was ever going to get from her; grinning, he stiffened up proud-like, evidently extremely pleased with himself for having 'won' – as he saw it. Before words could be exchanged, Artemis' nose wrinkled up as she gazed up at him, seeing that horrible victory grin and she huffed, walking forward to leave him in the room. Apollo blinked for a moment, stunned by her sudden departure (before being able to gloat) and stumbled forward. "Hey! Wait up!"


	11. Chapter Ten: Of love and marriage

Hephaestus groaned as he saw the reflection of his wife on a shield propped up against the wall. He had been moving the mess of armor and battle gear in his room that had built up over the decades. He liked to create his own innovations, sure, but he also took great pleasure in replicating what the mortals made and in consequence, making it better. Since he had taken over the care of Olympus, he hadn't spent too much time relaxing in his room. Instead, it was now filled with replicas, creations and creatures from two thousand years. His bed towered over the room in an extendable, rising platform that seemed to move for him to make his life easier. Pushing both his hands against a canon, it toppled over to the side and a golden ball rolled out. It slammed against a foot of the bed – that jumped to the side – and rolled to the feet of Aphrodite. She briefly looked down at the ball, tapping it with her toe before stepping in with a playful sigh.

"I thought you would have created something to organize this by now," she tried to tease though he was refusing to turn a face him. Lifting a hand to tap her lip, she quickly tried to assess the situation and handle it best. When he turned around a large column and seemed to disappear, she frowned as she placed the same hand on her hip and leaned against a desk full of blueprints. "I missed you."

"_Hah_!" he shouted from behind the mountain of inventions and though she couldn't see it, he was shaking his head.

"I did!" she snapped defensively as her frown grew.

"It seems you had plenty of beds to keep you warm in the meantime," he grumbled semi-loudly, obviously meant for her to here but not as loud to seem proud of the statement. Most times he attempted to call her out or point out her sexual exploits, the joke was turned on him so he had begun to quietly hate it instead. He pushed a wooden piece of a trebuchet closer to the wall, exposing himself to her once again. In the corner of his eye, he could see she had turned her face away. "Oh don't pretend, my dear. It makes this more difficult."

Her eyes flashed a familiar anger and she stepped towards him daringly, lifting her finger to shake at him. "How dare you! I have _always_ loved you –"

"NEVER!" he burst into a loud roar, tossing aside several weapons that slammed against the walls and he finally faced her. She didn't flinched, as her anger was overriding any fear that might've come from this explosion and she simply faced him. "You have NEVER loved me! You should have married Ares and have been done with it!"

"_I_ shouldn't have married _anyone_!" she shouted back as she placed a hand on her chest, then pointed to him. "But I was used as a bartering tool so _you_ would release your mother!"

"_And_?" he snapped back immediately, his demeanor suggesting he saw no problem with her statement.

Sighing as she brought a hand to her face, she counted to ten to regain her composure over the situation. Thankfully since she didn't respond, Hephaestus had calmed down enough to simply stand there and look at the woman he had imagined returning for years. He shifted uncomfortably from one foot to the other as he watched her, wishing she would shout as he did so he knew what she was thinking. It was the most difficult part of their relationship, in his view: she wasn't as blunt as Athena or as open about her emotions as Demeter. It was as if she wanted him to guess her emotions or feelings constantly, something Hephaestus was not good at nor intended to do. Finally, she looked up to him with a small smile as she stepped closer to him, enough to extend her hand and place it on his cheek. He closed his eyes, letting himself feel her soft skin and soothing, warm touch.

"You are much more like your mother than you'll ever admit," she said softly, causing her husband to open his eyes to glare at her. His overly large and rough hands reached up and grabbed her wrist, pulling her hand off his face and slightly pushing her away from him.

"Don't compare me to her," he growled lowly.

"You confuse love with marriage," Aphrodite boldly continued as she was not bothered by his looks. "You think marrying someone means they love you or that marriage is proof of that love – much like she does. Neither of you have ever understood that the two are completely separate. You can't _force_ love. It can be cruel, warm, unpredictable, difficult or easy … but never _forced_."

His dark, coal like eyes seemed to soften from their state of hatred and instead grew remotely sad. Letting in a small amount of air between his lips, he nodded slightly. "Okay."

But Aphrodite blinked in confusion. Her face faltered as she felt exactly what was happening to him and she smiled widely, laughing a little as she moved forward and wrapped her arms around her large and awkward husband. Laying her head on his shoulder, he wrapped his arms around her in return, holding her for what he assumed was the last time.

"Do you want to know why I love you?" she quietly asked, staring straight ahead as she continued to lean against him. Not waiting for his response, she continued, "You have created inventions, tools and weapons in place of friends. You make workers, worshippers, parents, children … but you never will make a replacement for me. You know that no matter how skilled you are, there is no amount of iron, steel or wood to replace me."

"How –" he started to ask, his demeanor completely melting away as he felt utterly exposed in this rare moment. His eyebrows rose high above his head and his eyes worried, wondering what else she had known this entire time. She giggled loudly, lifting her hand up to his lips and shook her head.

"Of _course_ I would know that!" she continued her laugh and stood back from him, her smile slightly condescending. Hephaestus nervously glanced to the side, lifting a hand to scratch at the back of his head. Reaching her hands out to grab one of his, she stroked the top of his head (the softest part, if you could call it soft) with her thumbs. "I do love you, Hephaestus."

"And every other god here," he growled quietly, though he kept his eyes off of her. It was too easy to fall for her and say everything was fine when looking at her beautiful face. His mouth twisted to the side, as if he had been tormented into asking his next question, "How many?"

She squinted her pale green eyes for a moment, looking at him for a clue as to what he meant. When she didn't respond, he glanced to her and sneered. "How many children?"

"Oh," she slipped out before she could think. "That doesn't matter –"

"Of course it matters!" he exploded again, his hand being pulled from hers and his arms going up into the air. Used to these conversations and the manner in which he dealt with it, she simply backed up and left him space. Slamming his hand on a large crate, he pointed to her. "You say that marriage isn't any proof but what about children? You have had them with everyone but me!"

Finally Hephaestus seemed to have struck a cord with his wife, catching her in a moment where she wasn't prepared. Her eyes widened and she had quietly gasped, as if this was news to her. Lifting her hand to her mouth, she tried to leave herself some time to think before responding. Her eyes averted from him to the ground and she raced for an excuse – she wasn't ready to admit she was selfish enough to not want children with him. She might find love and beauty in everything, but when it came to her own children, seeing his face scared her. Her vanity would never let the goddess of love _and_ beauty to have ugly children. He huffed loudly, acknowledging that he had "won" in some sense, but her silence made him uncomfortable. Staring at her, Hephaestus suddenly felt overwhelmingly guilty when he noticed she was crying.

"Uhh," he started in surprise, lifting his hands out towards her to attempt to make her feel better. She pulled back immediately to the door and wiped her eyes, only to turn and run after slipping out, "I'm sorry."

The blacksmith god was left in his messy room, standing and staring at what was an empty doorway. He blinked a few times, confused as his guilt slowly melted away and he realized that he had caved within seconds. Looking around, he pushed over the closest thing to him while muttering to himself, "How does she do that?"

**Author's Note: This is one of my favorite chapters so far. I hope you enjoyed it. **


	12. Chapter Eleven: Clash of the titans

The bedroom of Athena was not elaborately decorated, not like some would assume. The goddess expected a lot of mankind back when they ran the world freely and openly; she expected extravagant temples and dedicated worshippers, but her style was much quieter. Her walls were lined with bookshelves filled with books, scrolls and papers from all kinds of centuries. She had been quick to update her library to make up for lost time and was now sitting on a chair in the center of the room, leaning on a table as she read a book. All around her was a bit of a mess; she had pulled books from the shelves and opened them on her bed and neighboring tables. Scrolls were rolled out on a specific place and papers were stacked in a messy style of organization. She would look up every once and awhile to glance at another opened book, verifying information or looking something else up before moving on. She had taken her time awaken to learn as much as she could about the mortal world, information she had been passing onto anyone that walked into her room. She was in a state of awe over their changes and annoyance that she wasn't there to push it along. Every once and awhile she would laugh at a ridiculous notion, sneer at a philosophical debate or lean back and contemplate.

It had taken Artemis by surprise that she hadn't looked over at her in a few minutes. In fact, either she had chosen to ignore the goddess' presence or didn't know she had been standing there. She stared at Athena, marveling at how her hair seemed to change between blonde and brown in the light and how intense she looked when reading. Looking down at the ground, the huntress smiled before shaking her head and clearing her throat.

"You're not as observant as before," she pointed out.

"I need not be," Athena retorted quickly, leaving Artemis with the impression that she had known she was standing there the entire time. Reaching over to grab a pen, Athena scribbled something on a piece of paper to her right before glancing over at the younger looking goddess. "I am not a huntress."

"That's debatable," Artemis almost mumbled; while the two had a strong relationship, she often saw Athena's ways of war similar to hunting but less respectful.

"I'm assuming you didn't come here to argue that again," the war goddess stated plainly; often her biggest fault was her bluntness, something that often created awkwardness in situations like this. She pushed herself and the chair she occupied away from the table and proceeded to fold her hands in her lap to face her sister.

"No," Artemis replied calmly. She was used to Athena's blunt nature by now and had been able to counter it equally. "Why didn't you tell anyone about Apollo's prophecy?"

"Why didn't you?" Athena squinted at the huntress, her face showing a hint of confusion before standing up from her chair. "One would assume his sister should have trusted him."

The huntress shook her head and waved her hand in the air; though both seemed to be on the edge of annoyance, their voices were utterly calm and controlled. Artemis stepped in further into the room, not ready to back down from Athena's strong stance.

"There is a big difference between his sister hearing yet _another_ prophecy and ignoring one among millions, and him turning to someone of _wisdom_. _Someone_ who should have known better than to keep it silent."

"And just what good would it have done us, Artemis?" Athena asked smoothly, raising a judgmental eyebrow as she stepped towards the younger goddess who seemed to sneer in annoyance. "The Sleep would have happened either way; that is the curse of a prophecy. We have never had prophecies about us and while the mortal ones rarely change, it's impossible to know if that applies to us or not. Now –" she interrupted herself, changing her tone as she stepped forward again and closed the gap between them by inches. Looking down at the huntress, she slightly glared and lowered her tone. "I don't know what kind of guilt you are dealing with here, but I refuse to let you blame me for your misgivings."

As if she had known exactly what had been going on, Hera appeared behind Artemis before she could do or say anything with a hand on her shoulder and smooth smile across her face. Both of the pair seemed somewhat startled by her sudden presence and turned to her, blinking and silence to prove she was the last thing they expected.

"Girls," Hera started which immediately launched the pair back into annoyance; the mother goddess had insisted on calling any female who swore off sex a 'girl' and those who didn't 'ladies'. It was a mild enough distinction that neither of them had complained about it, but had noticed it and made similar faces every time she said it. "Your orders are not suggestions. These things can be dealt with later. Ares," she beckoned with a wave of her face and the third annoyed god entered the situation. Ares, with his arms crossed and a pissed off look on his face, walked forward and briefly made eye contact with Athena before looking away. Pulling on Artemis' shoulder, the huntress reluctantly followed the motion and Hera out of the room, leaving the war-like pair alone.

Raising a brown eyebrow to her rival, Athena turned around and started to collect a few books and stacking them neatly before she attempted a conversation.

"This won't take long," she stated without much emotion over the shuffling of papers. Ares snorted air out of his nose and grinned in the corner of his mouth as he leaned against the wall, glancing back out into the hallway as Iris passed him by. He watched her pass him by before replying, "I know it won't."

"Then you can return to Aphrodite once again," Athena decided to push him further, glaring at him as she had noticed his gawking. He turned to glare at her, unmoved by her judgment.

"This has nothing to do with her," he replied with a hint of warning to not continue on this path. Athena returned with a laugh, rolling her eyes as she grabbed another book and threw it on the bed.

"Oh _please_, Ares. You only get that pathetic pout on her face when she ignores you."

"She _never_ ignores me!" he replied to protect his ego, slamming his fist against her doorway. At least in this instance, he was correct that she hadn't ignored him; after her fight with Hephaestus, she had collapsed in his room crying and before they had time to repair the situation, Hera had shown up to pull him here. But the truth was lost in the moment where Athena simply shook her head and approached him in full gear, as if ready for a war. He blinked down at her and grinned. "Expecting a fight?"

"With you, I never know," she said with a hint of a grumble as she walked passed him and out into the hallway. Ares kicked himself off the wall with a laugh and followed her.


	13. Chapter Twelve: Duty

**Note: **_Thank you so much for the reviews and encouragement. I appreciate it a lot! :) I'm hoping to keep myself motivated – but it seems to be working so far! Thanks again. _

For the better part of her life, Hera had been misunderstood, misinterpreted and seen as a weak and jealous woman. It was an unfortunate result of her marriage with Zeus and his treatment of her in the past. She was a beautiful but modest woman, something many refused to see as she was off-limits in the strictest manner. Though it was common knowledge she would never stray from him, she had been effected by the natural ascension into motherhood and had never been looked at kindly since. It took contests with mortals or meeting them to receive any kind of compliment for Zeus never had those words for her. She was a blonde and fair skinned goddess but since her hair was always up and behind a veil, it was near impossible to know its length. Hera had retreated into the role given to her and enforced a maternal image upon herself; it's important to know that she did not resent the role, but rather how the others treated her because of it. When all she had for kindness and affection was from Zeus, she scrambled for what little bit she could gather.

It was in this that she became so angry when he cheated on because it wasn't just a _few_ times. It was never just two or three children; Zeus had nearly populated all of Olympus without her help. Her husband, whom she loved dearly, was not only unable to remain faithful to her but resist to show her the affection she deserved and needed whenever he did cheat on her. Despite all these problems she had suffered, no one knew; she kept personal matters utterly between herself and her husband (except when blaming his offspring) and refused to openly talk about her grievances. She was a stoic woman, which had often been confused with cold.

The goddess had just now finished making her rounds to all of the council, verifying they had gone off to fulfill their orders. Aphrodite had been particularly resistant to listing her children though by the time Hera left, she had already put four names down. The queen of the gods checked in on Dionysus, wordlessly giving him a judgmental look before shutting his door and heading to the rest of the empty rooms. Smiling, glad to see all was in order, she had turned towards her husband's room when Demeter seemed to pop out of nowhere. Blinking, Hera looked around for any sign of Persephone before looking back to her sister.

"She's gone," Demeter moped as she watched Hera's brown eyes before looking down to the ground and sniffing.

"Ah," Hera replied shortly but the knowledge of what had happened was expression in that single syllable. Putting a comforting hand out on her shoulder, she motioned to her own room for the two of them to talk. Demeter weakly smiled before moving in front of the woman and into the room. Hera followed her in and closed the door shut, turning her eyes to her sister; it was remarkable no one had ever mentioned that they might be twins. It was impossible to know since they had grown up in some unfortunate circumstances, but the two were remarkably similar. Their faces were both the same in shape, their smiles both kind and their temperament equally unpredictable. The major disqualifying features were their hair and eyes, the same in color but reversed: Demeter was a brunette with yellowish eyes; big harvest colored eyes that looked up at her sister in remarkable sadness.

"All I ever wanted was an apology," she admitted quietly, hoping to gain support from Hera as she always had. Not disappointed, Hera placed a hand on her shoulder as she sat down on the bed next to her brunette sister.

"That's understandable, but this is Hades. Neither him or his brothers will ever apologize for their actions," Hera stated plainly as fact, trying to press the reality of the situation into her – even though she hated that fact as well. "Perhaps you use Persephone in place of closer companionship."

"I won't marry," Demeter bitterly replied, turning away from Hera to glare at the top of the bed. "I won't be humiliated and subjected to one god simply for company."

The sudden rush of awkward silence hit them very strong; Hera's hand had slipped off of Demeter's shoulder and into her lap, glaring at her sister who refused to look at her. The harvest goddess took in a deep breath and held it for a few seconds, knowing she had just offended her long-term friend. She looked up at the ceiling to try and compose her words carefully before shifting towards the queen and placed a hand on her own.

"I'm sorry," she sighed, grabbing Hera's hand tightly before she could pull it away. The queen resisted, trying to pull her hand from underneath but when her friend held on, she snorted and glared at her; Demeter frowned. "I didn't mean to insult you. But –"

"I know," the blonde interrupted her, pressing her lips together tightly as she recalled Demeter's past with gods. Even with someone as strong as Demeter, she leaned on Hera for support and guidance like everyone else, leading to many discussions of this nature. However, no matter how close Hera became with her sister, she had long held a grudge against her for her relationship with Zeus and various others. Since then, Hera had tried to convince her to marry and settle with one god – it was the easiest way to earn her forgiveness and for her to gain control. Putting her other hand on top of Demeter's, she pat it gently. "But Persephone has found happiness in the arrangement. It's time you let her go."

Demeter sighed as she leaned forward and placed her face in her hands, letting the idea of never seeing her daughter again rush over her. She shook her head behind her hands and wordlessly stood up to leave the room. Hera simply sat and watched her sister storm out of the room, leaving her door wide open. With a loud sigh, she leaned back on the bed and spread her arms out wide, letting herself relax for a moment. Staring at the ceiling, the queen closed her eyes and imagined sitting in her gardens behind the council chambers, one of the few places she could be herself and hardly be bothered. All of the sudden she felt a hand on her leg and she sat up quickly, ready to smack whoever dared touch her; her hand flew in the air but another other hand grabbed her by the wrist. Her eyes widened in a split second of fear, until she took the time to see who it was.

"You bastard," Hera grinned at her husband who laughed, letting her hand go as he climbed on top of her.

"Rough talk?" he asked absent mindedly as he kissed her neck, obviously not interested in the answer. Hera slowly wrapped his arms around him, closing her eyes again to enjoy the feeling of embracing her husband once again.

"Nevermind it," she whispered in his ear and with a wave of her hand, her door shut and locked itself.


	14. Chapter Thirteen: Queen to H4 Check

The process that Athena and Ares underwent to search the political stability of Earth was long and difficult considering the complexity of the world. There were hundreds of countries, all with intricate societies, cultures and histories that affected their view on themselves and their neighbors. It took a few days to search through some of the large ones, while certain continents caused utter headaches with their long historical grudges. It was of no surprise that Ares did not care much about the history of the situation, but rather their current course of action. Altogether they had wasted a few days arguing over how important knowing how the situation occurred as opposed to just knowing it, leaving them exactly where they stood now: Athena was in a closed off library, skimming books and reading on the history of China while Ares stood guard – another term for eyeing any friendly curves. About the third time he made a noise over seeing hips move from side to side, Athena groaned loudly as she disappeared behind a large stack of books. It caused the god to turn over his shoulder with a raised eyebrow; surprised she even pulled away from her studies for a second to scold him.

"Tell me, oh _wise_ one," he began loudly, clearing his throat as he turned around to lean on the window he had previously been leaning against. "Why is it only females take on a vow of virginity?"

"They don't," she grumbled as she rounded the corner, turning a page and briefly glancing up at him in the meantime. "You haven't heard of monks and priests yet, I take it."

"Not mortals," he scoffed and waved a hand in the air, uninterested in whatever bizarre habits the mortals had picked up in his absence. "No male god has ever vowed to remain so – only goddesses. Why is that?"

"Because only females are changed and judged by their sexual actions," Athena offered plainly as she flipped another page. Ares couldn't help but laugh as he tossed his head back, letting his voice echo in the halls of the library. Though the conversation had not interested her to this point, the war goddess suddenly seemed invested as she looked up from the book and kept her eyes on him, narrowed. "Find something funny?"

"For someone so brilliant, you can be so blind," Ares taunted dangerously, noting the movement of her eyes as a sign of anger. She slammed shut the book she had been reading and set it on the table. She wavered a moment, staring at him with her _ eyes until she suddenly shifted.

"So you disagree," she sniffed calmly, having realized she was about to lose her temper. It was the simplest and yet often most difficult game between the two of them; Ares would try to make her lose her calm and Athena hardly did. Running her hands over various other books, she shrugged it off. "That's not new."

Ares wasn't immediately able to hide his surprise that she didn't press him further. It was no secret she loved to debate and he loved to antagonize. He shrugged back in defense and turned to look at the walls and ceiling around him. He inspect everything worth giving time to and then some; within a few minutes, he could have explained the architecture of the ceiling perfectly. Athena's eyes wavered over the books, to him, back to the books, back to him and to the open pages and empty words once again. She was obviously distracted and had a hard time standing still. She shifted from foot to foot and paced up and down the edge of the table, trying to decide which book to pick out next when in reality, that was now the furthest from her mind. She pressed her lips together as she bit back saying something and paced the table once again. She finally lifted a book to her eye level and squinted at the words, trying to make them out but her mind was still racing elsewhere. With a loud sigh, she let go of the book and let it drop back to the table, causing a loud slam that echoed between the bookshelves. The sound caused Ares to snap his attention back to her, now looking upon the war goddess with her hands on her hips and a mildly annoyed look on her face.

"_Okay_," she said, breaking the silence. "Humor me: how am I 'blind'?"

A coy little grin swept across his face, satisfied with his ability to pull her into a debate. He attempted to nonchalantly shrug his shoulders, but she saw through him: he was preparing and enjoying this thoroughly.

"You don't see that males are affected by love and that you are equally affected by **not** choosing to love," he tossed out rather eloquently for Ares, causing Athena to wonder if someone else had coached him on this topic (i.e. Aphrodite). She eyed him skeptically for a moment, waiting to hear who was whispering to him what he should say.

"If you had heard me correctly the first time, I said females are _most_ changed by love, leaving open the idea that males can and are changed as well," she precisely chose each word carefully, the pauses between them hinting at a slight annoyance on her part. Athena didn't ramble off words just to be heard – no, she was careful to make sure she was correct the first time. Keeping her eyes on him, she then shifted to his second statement. "Love is one of the most manipulative emotions because it can cause you to betray your friends, hurt the one you love and cause unnecessary violence. By not choosing love to toss me around, I have only myself to blame and my own actions to answer for: _not_ the sways and demands love would have of me."

"How is any other emotion different?" Ares blurted out, stepping on her last word as he was impatient to heat up the debate. He didn't have the time to wonder just how appalled Aphrodite would be at Athena's statement. "You're just pretending you're above it when you still act like the rest of us."

"You shouldn't be arguing for love anyway, when you hardly know its meaning," Athena snapped back quickly though relatively still under control. Though it was hardly a tactic of hers to change topics in normal arguments, she usually did so with Ares; arguing intellectually with him was a lost cause, in her opinion, so it became about who could outwit the other or change the fault to someone else. "You go for whatever is pretty and vulnerable; you _encourage_ rape after a victory!"

"You wouldn't understand," Ares growled lowly, annoyed at the hint that he didn't understand love but wasn't about to debate it. Love was a tricky subject for the god for though he would never admit it to Athena, he did believe it changed men in a manner he was not comfortable with. But woe be the day he denied love or his ability to love – he would never recover from Aphrodite's wrath. "You don't _enjoy_ victory – you don't feel the rush of screaming and running into battle. It's all about plans and precise legions to you – like some boring chess game. Nothing completes that feeling like –"

"Violently _raping_?" Athena butt in loudly, her mouth twisting angrily at the idea.

"Since when have you been an advocate for mortal victims?" Ares suddenly replied in a cool tone, a chilling effect that often meant she had stumbled directly into his next move. By nature, the war goddess' shoulder stiffened up like they did in battle; she was called to attention, awaiting his next verbal blow like it would come from his sword. His eyes seemed to dance over her body, watching her stiffen at his voice and his lips curled into a grin. "You have had no such compassion for those who have lost at your hand before. You have always turned away from the screams of those that beg for mercy. In fact… they _disgust_ you, don't they?"

Athena's eyes flashed a distinct rage that Ares could feel boiling up within her, causing his grin to widen all the more.

"Those _pathetic_ women, incapable of defending themselves," the god supposed, walking toward the table that she stood behind. "If only they had followed you and your shining example, they would have been able to defeat them. But any woman overcome by a man isn't worthy in your eyes, is she?"

Her fist had already been raised in the air by the time Ares was halfway through the sentence, so when the last words came out of his mouth, they were silenced by the meeting of her fist and the table. Swiping her hand across, she pushed off the books to her right in a continuation of her anger and raised the same hand to point at him.

"You should not speak of what you know _nothing_!" she shouted loudly, causing her voice to echo and bounce off the library walls as if she were standing in a canyon. When she gave herself a second to calm down, she noticed the pleasure her outburst had caused him and she cleared her throat, regaining her composure. Shaking her head, she bent down to pick up one of the books she had just thrown down. "It is not by law of nature that women bow to men. It is not lacking intelligence, strength or ambition. It's fear. These mortal women have a fear instilled in them so young that they would be unwanted when strong, unloved if smart and alone. They are taught to be loving and docile, creatures of warmth and love while the men prey on them like easy targets. It's quite pathetic; so, yes, in that sense, they disgust me."

Athena raised her eyes to meet Ares as she lifted a book from the table and idly stroked the pages with her thumb. For a second, she dared him to speak up; her face awaited some intelligent remark or a look upon his face that he had some sort of comeback. Instead, she was met with a silence and thoughtless look; either he had nothing to say or didn't understand where she was going with it. Either way, she continued.

"All females, immortal and not, have a power you fail to see and you underestimate us because we tend to your fragile egos. But some of us refuse to see this through," Athena calmly continued as she rounded the corner of the table and opened up the distance between them. Clearly stepping towards him, Ares kept his strong stance, refusing to back down so easily. "I made a vow to myself, my sisters, my followers and females everywhere: that I would abstain from men until we were _respected_ and recognized as equals. I am willing to forsake whatever I feel of love to be that symbol for women and _that_ –" she emphasized as she slammed the book into his chest, causing his eyes to widen in surprise. He grabbed the book from her as fast as possible, but he had already slightly stumbled back from not being prepared. "Aphrodite respects."

"And Medusa?" he added in extremely quietly, but his tone was very clear: he had kept that instance in Athena's life as his ace in the hole – though by this point, it had also become his last ditch effort to win. Ares had never won a battle with Athena, by hand or mouth, and he was desperate to break that horrible pattern. "Your selfless act for women didn't apply to her, did it?"

"She became a great warrior," Athena replied coldly and quickly, not giving herself time to think or a pause long enough to think he had caught her off guard. She narrowed her eyes at him for a second before turning around and heading back to the table. Ares was silenced. He could not argue that fact nor was he quick enough to play to Medusa's feelings and short life in isolation. Crossing his arms in annoyance, he looked back out the window to keep himself occupied and from thinking his loss over again. But what Ares failed to see in Athena was a split second of self-doubt; she paused behind the table, staring off into nothing as she reflected on the debate. Though it was fleeting, the war god would have recognized that he had indeed won: he had planted the seed of doubt and watered it plenty.


	15. Chapter Fourteen: Flying High

**Author's Note: Thank you for the kind comments! I am surprised and very honored people enjoy my story so much. :) **

Hermes had a simple philosophy that had worked for centuries: do the work fast, all at once so you had time to relax afterwards. The only downfall was that at first he was caught finishing early and given another task, but that rarely occurred. Needless to say, he had decided to work quickly again and let some of the nymphs do his own work for him. After contacting a few in the forests, he demanded they spread the word of Olympus' revival and pull all creatures out from hiding. A simple task that nymphs excelled at, as they were excellent gossipers. The biggest problem, however, had been finding his earth bound son, Pan. He was unaware if the satyr god had slept himself since Hermes hadn't found the time to find him before falling asleep. The nymphs were clueless on his whereabouts, the mermaids didn't care, the harpies had not seen him in centuries and what few centaurs were left said he had been last seen in the forests of Africa. After the daunting task of searching and questioning the creatures of that large continent, the messenger god decided he had earned a break from looking.

Landing in Las Vegas, Hermes quickly took a more modern fashion; he wore torn and rough jeans and a blue button down that was only fastened halfway up his chest. Running his fingers through his hair, he adjusted the look to seem more informal and as he snapped his fingers, a pair of black sunglasses appeared in his brown-reddish hair. He shifted his shoulders before walking out of the alley he had changed in and joined the drunken crowds immediately. Blending in almost perfectly, his bright green eyes bounced from mortal to mortal as he began to walk like them and listen to their slang. Hermes had always been fascinated by impersonation; it was how he survived the changing times, walked openly into well-guarded places and took many mortal women to their beds. He didn't stick out in their minds – they didn't see a god or someone different, but someone just like them ... only with a little more confidence than normal. He put those at ease around him, charmed them into believing every word that slipped out of his mouth and left just as easily. It was no shock that Las Vegas intrigued him since it brought all walks of life to its streets. He heard many different languages, saw different classes of people and heard all types of dialects, slang words and cuss words.

The extravagant hotel called Caesar's Palace caught his eye and he let out a loud laugh as he approached, eyeing the pillars, fountains and statues. Shaking his head, he entered through the grand doorway with little awe in his eyes over the decorations. Glancing from his left to right, he noticed mortals lingering at the large desk, talking to well dressed individuals behind counters. Briefly nodding to himself, Hermes strolled over the clean floor and to a worker looking down at her computer. He put his elbow casually on the counter top, glanced around at the people in the lobby and cleared his throat.

"So what is there to do in this town?" he asked simply as he looked back to the woman who laughed rather loudly. She finished typing a few more words before pointing a finger to him and smiled.

'That's good, sir," she replied quickly. "I haven't heard that one before."

Hermes' rose an eyebrow to her as he could detect the sarcasm in her voice, though she was holding it back. He simply stared at her, awaiting a real response. She laughed a few more times, albeit awkwardly, before she let her mouth hang open from the realization. She blinked and looked down to the computer again, rustling her hands around to find a few brochures.

"Oh –" she fumbled slightly before the brochures seemed to magically appear at his elbow, fanned out on display. She suddenly avoided eye contact with Hermes, keeping her attention on the images before her. She pointed an index finger to several different images. "There are shows at each of these venues and hotels. Casinos are open twenty-four seven and we have a special guest tonight: Khloé Deliria will be performing."

"Will she?" Hermes asked as he attempted to regain eye contact with the flustered mortal who continued to look elsewhere. When he flashed his eyes downward and caught the spelling of the name, he squinted at it quickly and lifted it up. The singer looked young and familiar – _very_ familiar. He hummed to himself quietly as he tried to put his finger on it and he nodded to the worker while turning around and walking off. He checked his watch that appeared on his wrist as he glanced to it and turned off into the casino to waste a few hours.

By the time the concert came around, Hermes had poured about five hundred dollars into the machines. Not realizing what exactly that meant, he shrugged it off and slipped off the stool. He put his hand in his pocket where another five hundred dollars had appeared; he turned the corner where the room he had been empty hours earlier, but was now packed. He blinked in surprise but didn't hesitate to slip in to the right and hug the wall as he made his way to the busy and packed blue bar; the blue was quite distracting since the large room was dark to begin with. The lights underneath the bar on both sides were bright neon blue that cast its light on near half the room. All the glances were a glow in the dark blue and the liquor that lined the back wall was either blue or had a light on it to cast it that color. Hermes frowned at the monotony but there must have been a theme to reinforce it. He sniffed the air as he leaned towards the bar but his attention was pulled when a voice over the speakers announced the entertainer for the night and the crowd erupted in screams. The god winced, put a hand to his left ear because the woman to his left had an usually high pitch shout. His mouth twisted in distress when the screaming didn't cease because the woman stepped out on the stage.

Hermes's mouth dropped out just slightly: the woman had long, dark brown hair and eyes of different colors: the left was purple and the right was a light pink. Her skin was pale but to the messenger god, she seemed to glow. She was barely dressed, more like painted and seemed to stumble across the stage as if she were drunk. She grabbed the microphone and leaned forward, looking like she was about to fall into the crowd and laughed, which filled the room and encouraged the screams again. Her face was remarkably familiar and he bit back making an assumptions. Instead, he leaned against the wall and watched the madness unfold. She opened with a song about late night parties as she jumped around the stage, waving her hands in the air and grabbed drinks from the crowds handing them up to her. She would land on a stool, lean back and lay on it while singing, always holding the microphone unnecessarily close to her mouth. Either she had no slow songs or didn't use them, as the entire performance was one song about parties after the other. The people around him almost seemed to diminish to nothing before him, becoming drunken sex fiends with no sense of other people around them. They rubbed up close to each other and kissed like their lives depended on it, looking to Hermes like they were eating their faces off. He grimaced at their fervor and attempted to move around the room to avoid them, but they were everywhere. Several times he was offered something from a stranger, which he declined quickly and moved on. It was another hour before she was finished but it seemed she only stopped singing because the crowd was no longer listening: they were lost in their own, demented worlds. Hermes turned to his right to escape the madness when the singer was standing right in front of him; the messenger god blinked in silence.

Khloe leaned forward as she looked him over, up and down and down up. Her mouth twisted as she tried to figure something out. She put her finger out and jabbed him in the chest, leaning forward and nearly collapsing into him. Hermes immediately put his hands out on her shoulders to steady her.

"You … why do you _glow_?" she asked loudly to be heard over the crowd. She was very obviously talking to Hermes but her eyes wandered all over his body, seemingly looking at his glowing skin. He narrowed his eyes slightly as he realized exactly who she reminded him of: Aphrodite. Figuring he had discovered one of her many demigod children, he began pulling her by the shoulders out of the room: she deserved to know the truth. She yelled something at him as his strength was no match for hers but that didn't stop her from struggling. She grabbed at the walls which gave her no leverage until they were close enough to the door that he was able to hear her yelling. "Stop it! We're not done yet!"

"Done with _what_?" Hermes shouted over his shoulder, ready to pull her once more into the lobby of the hotel when she suddenly mustered up enough strength to pull away from him completely. He blinked in confusion at the lobby before spinning around to receive the girl collapsing into his arms. She heaved a specific sigh, one that meant she was hoping for something and he raised an eyebrow. "Are you drunk?"

The question would normally seem quite naïve, especially coming from him, but he was trying to be specific. Something was off about the girl but he couldn't quite determine if alcohol was the culprit. In response, she let out a round of giggles as she pulled herself up to his ear and kissed it at first. Hermes was unmoved by the action until she whispered, "Noo… I'm _high_.."

"Hm," was his initial response as he had little knowledge of this mortal feeling. She pressed her palms on his shoulders and pushed back to look at him once again, enthralled by his beauty and glowing nature.

"What is your name? You're so ... different," she rambled while her eyes searched for the answer.

"Hermes," he said plainly, unsure if she would know who he was. Not surprisingly, her face didn't change from hearing the word. She paused, staring blankly at his chest before leaning forward with a coy smile.

"Well … _Hermes_ …" she began, tracing a circle on his chest. "Have you ever wondered what it feels like to _fly_?"

The innocent question struck the messenger god so abruptly that his lips curved into a grin immediately; he had no time to think it over, if she actually knew who he was and had been toying with him, or she was truly that ignorant. There hadn't been much in life to prevent Hermes from bedding a woman, not even her parentage. And there was little doubt her beauty was not a gift from her mother and as he lifted his thumb to trace her lower lip, he stared into the purple eye and was able to pull together just exactly who her father was. He let out a small laugh and nodded his head.

"Why, yes I have."


	16. Chapter Fifteen: The Moirae

"My Lady, my Lord requests you stay behind," the servant of the Underworld said to the wall as his head was bowed, staring at the ground. He was at the door of his queen's room as she finished putting her robe on next to her bed. She lifted her eyebrows slightly in the reflection as she looked to the servant and than shrugged, tying on the edge on her shoulder.

"That's nice," she replied, indicating she had no intention of following such a request. She could see the servant awkwardly shift from one foot to other and glance back at another who was waiting in the hall and shrugged, not willing to put himself in the line of fire. The aged face looked back to the ground as it raced to think of something else to say. The goddess smiled gently at the reflection before spinning around to face them and placed her hands on her hips. "I will handle this. You're free."

Not willing to argue with her, they melted into the shadows in a hasty retreat. Thankfully it was much easier to let the queen convince the king than the reverse as they had quickly come to learn. Hades was notoriously ruthless with his servants and the souls of the Underworld; he rarely granted an audience to a soul wishing better judgment, he _never_ let anyone leave the Underworld and would easily take his anger out on the servants should something go wrong. Whenever Persephone left for the spring and summer, the Underworld became more tense and quiet. However when she was here, she was able to curve his anger and keep him calm most of the time. Slipping through her own unoccupied doorway, she marched down the dark hallway that both her skin and dress seemed to light; as she approached her husband's room, she placed a hand on the wall as she leaned her head against the doorway, staring at him. Hades was going through the pile of papers in his room, as if there was some other answer to his problem.

"You're nervous?" she asked quietly, her eyes a little worried; she had never seen the Fates. She wasn't sure if he didn't want her to see them or they refused her as an audience, but either way, she had no way of judging what this meeting meant. He stopped shuffling the papers immediately and looked over his shoulder, sighing slightly.

"You were supposed to stay in your room."

"And you're surprised I'm not?" she raised an eyebrow.

"No," he grinned somewhat, but his desire to keep her behind was still present. Shaking his head, he set a parchment down and beckoned her in. She glanced around to see if any servants were lingering as she walked in and sat in an empty spot on his bed. Looking up at him demanded his eyes on her, which caused him to smile again and he put his hand on her cheek. "My Sisters aren't pleasant. They will take whatever form they want you to see. The other gods fear them because they always show themselves as hideous creatures, but not with me. And …they're not friendly."

"And the Underworld is supposed to be?" she asked with a blink, wondering what was so different from these goddesses as the others that lived amongst them.

Hades laughed, conceding to her point but as he sat in the chair facing her, he shook his head. "They can affect us. If we anger them, they can cause us terrible trouble."

"Oh _please_, husband," Persephone sighed as she put a hand on his leg and pat it, as if he were a child that just claimed monsters were real. "_Anyone_ we anger can cause us trouble – look at my mother."

"This is different," Hades replied quietly, his annoyance with her taking this so easily starting to show. "I will take you on one condition."

"Hmm?"

"You don't speak."

"…_What_?" Persephone's reply was so simple and yet said so much. Hades winced slightly at the tone she took, but he wouldn't back down. She shook her head instinctively; even though keeping quiet was often very easy for her, she didn't like being told to do so. Before she could voice her complaints more, Hades stood up and slammed his fist on the top of his desk.

"You don't get it!" he yelled like he was talking to a servant and turned his back on her. "They know _everything_! They know this argument, they know I'm coming to see them and they know _why_! They know the answers to our problems and if we insult them even the _slightest_, it's over!"

This loud and angry voice had caused her to put her hands up against her chest, cupping the hands together; she looked like she was protecting herself. She was used to his voice and had never flinched before, but it had never been directed at her. It was easier to listen to his shouting when it was at someone else then at her. When his rant was only met with silence, he realized what had just happened and turned to face her. Showing an apologetic face, he sat next to her on the bed and took her hands from off her chest. Holding them, he looked at all four of their hands.

"They can change anything. Even your desire to have children."

Persephone smiled a little, glad to see he had calmed down but also to that notion; it was the first time he had acknowledged the idea and said it out loud. "My mother will protect me."

"She _can't_," he pressed on, now looking his wife in the eyes and shook his head; he loved her, but it was times like these that he realized how naïve she could be. "Even Zeus fears them. Now promise me: you won't speak unless they ask something of you."

Persephone squinted at her husband, looking for some hint of a joke or acknowledgement that this was just exaggeration. The Moirae had hardly been spoken of when she was growing up – then again, her mother didn't tell her much at all. But between the Underworld and Olympus, in this moment she realized how little the gods spoke of them; she knew who and what they were, but that was about it. It settled on her that if her husband was afraid of them even though they showed him favor, then it was in her best interest to fear them as well. She nodded slowly, breaking the eye contact with her husband as she looked down to the ground. Hades leaned forward, kissing her cheek to thank her.

The path to the Moirae was winding, dark and cold. Persephone had lost her way several minutes ago and was holding onto Hades' robe for guidance. No one was allowed to follow them so he had to lead the way, something he seemed fairly confident about. They had approached several two or three way decisions and he hadn't even hesitated to take a certain route. At one point, as they passed by an image carved on the wall, Persephone squinted at it as she thought she recognized it. Biting back the urge to ask if they were lost, they continued their silent journey through hallway after hallway, ones that extended into a great hall-like size and those that squeezed them so tight, she had to walk behind him to fit through. She kept looking behind her shoulder as the cold rush of wind made her feel like someone was following or watching them. She took in a deep breath to sigh when suddenly he stopped and she bumped into his shoulder. Letting out a small sound of surprise, she looked up at her husband who only stared forward. The ground was remarkably cold – not just the ground, but a few inches above it. The air was different and gave her chills; shivering, she pulled herself closer to Hades as the pair looked straight ahead to what appeared to be a cave dwelling.

The ceiling extended high above them, curving like an arch with stalagmites populating the very top and dangling down dangerously. The walls were made of a cold, black stone that caused the entire area to be blacker even with light available. The walls were sparingly decorated with pieces of thread; Hades recognized them as lives that the Moirae enjoyed, tortured or were proud of. Each one held an entire mortal life and though they looked like pathetic pieces of fabric, the three sisters could recount the entire life by heart. A few feet in front of the couple began the pile of fabric that led to the trio in the center, a large pile that grew in bulk as one neared the center of the room. In the center of the room was also a large loom where the first of three was weaving consistently. The center sister was measuring the lengths, checking the fabric quality and sniffing its contents. The final sister was not exactly in the center of the room; she was wandering around the circle, pulling out various threads and cutting them with her sheers.

Neither of the three looked up from their work as the couple stared at them from the entrance. Hades didn't move as he knew that they had known they were coming though Persephone shifted uncomfortably. The difference between their reactions also laid in how the Moirae looked to each pair: for Hades, they looked like young beautiful women, varying in age only slightly. Clotho, the weaver, was the youngest and appeared to be about nine or ten years in age. She had long black hair that sat on the ground from her seated position, as if she had sat there weaving for so long and left her hair to grow. Lachesis, the measurer, was older - looked to be about fourteen with bright red hair that was braided and laid on her left shoulder. Atropos, the cutter, looked the oldest at about eighteen or nineteen and had bright blonde hair that was cut short. It almost looked recently cut, sharp at her jaw line, as if she had cut it herself by her own sheers (which was entirely possible).

However, to Persephone, they were old crones that looked like they should have died thousands of years ago. Their skin looked like it was melting off their faces, their hair was so thin you could barely tell what color it had been and their eyes were empty sockets. The queen put a hand over her mouth to cover up her gasp, horrified at their appearance as she momentarily forgot that they appeared as they wished. Hades didn't dare look down at his wife to encourage anything from her and he took a daring step forward, causing the middle sister to put her hand up to stop him. In his eyes, her black eyes looked straight at him and glared.

"You owe us," her clear voice rang through the halls behind him and Persephone blinked in confusion, as she heard a beautiful voice that didn't suite the sight she saw before her. Hades raised an eyebrow carefully, stopping as she beckoned him to but showing his displeasure with it.

"You already know I won't," he replied in a stubborn manner, as he always hated their desire to pretend they didn't foresee their conversation. Though he wasn't perfectly aware of how they knew, he had learned to guess that Atropos saw the future and told her sisters, as she was the only one who grinned. Clotho's nose turned upwards in a sneer but her fingers and eyes didn't move from the loom.

"Then you will find no help from us," Lachesis simply back simply, lifting a thread to her nose as her eyes remained on Hades alone.

"Sisters –"

"You did not call us that when we last visited," Clotho interrupted over the noise of her weaving, shaking her head downwards at her work. It was no secret that she held the grudges and often reminded those of their past mistakes. She was one of the most outspoken but also least predictable.

"Forgive me," Hades placed a hand on his chest, looking around the room carefully as he took another step towards the beginning of the pile of threads. Persephone remained where she first stepped in, not willing to tip the delicate situation by sticking close to his side. "I was angry."

"Sssssss," the middle one hissed in what sounded like a laugh, which was assumed since she was smiling. She threw a thread in front of her as her hand grabbed another, lifting it high in the air to let the length show. Twisting the end of it, she loosened parts of the thread, which caused Clotho great stress; the woman reached forward to slap her sister's hand, who moved away in time. About the time they were going to argue, Atropos stepped in to grab the thread and threw it aside, glaring at each of them equally – they quietly returned to their duties. The eldest looking of the three leaned forward on a table full of threads and leaned her chin in her hand to smile at the couple before them.

"Oh proud Hades," she began quite simply, letting her black eyes shift between the couple (which Persephone was unable to notice). "We know Zeus has sent you for information and we know you don't wish to see us. So tell me, _brother_: why should we help you?"

Hades clenched his jaw tightly; this was one of the most frustrating conversations he had ever had. It was difficult to bargain with someone who knew exactly what card one held. The other two sisters stopped their work to look at him, awaiting his answer as their work seemed to continue on its own. He briefly glanced down to the ground to regain his composure before looking at the three of them.

"Because we need you, Sisters," he admitted rather quietly, apparently still clenching his jaw tight enough that it sounded as if the words barely squeezed out. "_I…_ need you."

Atropos squealed with delight the seconds the words came out and her hands pressed together in a clap. Turning to her other sisters, they each seemed not quite as pleased to hear the words but smiled nonetheless. They nodded to each other as Clotho turned to face him and opened her hands slowly in the air, revealing a small black orb. Energy seemed to crackle from her fingertips and cause the orb to grow in size as she extended her hands further away from each other. By the time she opened her mouth to speak, it was the size of a baseball.

"_Immortal sisters betrayed them all_

_For favor of the weak ones, they did fall._

_A mistake made clear - they turned on her:_

_Alone and dying, she begged them stir."_

She turned to Lachesis to hand off the orb who didn't touch it with her fingers but rather the energy that began crackling at her fingertips. She continued the prophetic rhyme.

"_A war unseen, Olympus is key._

_But fools of pride, they do not see._

_Find the wild one to help in quest_

_Speak with her at her behest."_

As guessed, she then turned to the final and most deadly sister – she who often enjoyed malicious futures and terrible ends. Not to Hades' surprise, she smirked behind the crackling black orb.

"_A choice you have, a choice to make_

_To save them all, or them forsake:_

_The way unclear but victory in hand_

_Alone, perhaps, is how you stand."_

It was natural to think the prophecy was over – a paragraph from each sister was the usual. Hades stepped forward to claim the orb, but Atropos shrieked, pulling the orb closer to her chest as her sisters pointed their fingers at him. He stopped in his tracks, his eyes widened from surprise as he froze in place. Atropos stepped forward and her voice continued, low and serious,

"_A word of this, we give to you:_

_Not all as seems before is true_

_Listen closely or thus you fail_

_In mortals, even gods are frail." _


	17. Chapter Sixteen: The List

The few days after Hades had seen the Moirae, it had been quiet on Olympus. Word had been sent to Zeus of their prophecy but council was to be held off until the others had finished their tasks. The couple of the Underworld were left with the haunting words of the trio, while Zeus could only imagine what little help they had provided. It was a mortal month before all members of the council had returned and word was buzzing all over of the prophecy already. Poseidon returned at his brother's request, but alone this time; Amphitrite was not fond of Olympus nor leaving the ocean. Ares and Athena had returned with plenty of books and information in tow. Hermes was the last to return after Artemis and Apollo, but no one had directly seen him except Hestia who had alerted them of his return. Just before the council, Aphrodite and her son, Eros, were sitting on the bed in her room, looking over the large list of children she had on Earth. Eros bit into an apple as he scanned the paper.

"Is it all of them?" she asked with the tip of her index finger on her lip, staring over her son's shoulder nervously.

"Well, all but _her_," he mumbled through the apple in his mouth, starting to glance up at his mother as she slapped him on the back of his head.

"They don't need to know about her. Not yet anyway," she replied as she glanced over her shoulder, making sure her door was still shut. Sighing, she leaned back on the headboard and looked up to the ceiling. "How are they?"

Eros shrugged as he tossed the letter to the ground and bit into the apple again, rolling over onto his back to stare at the ceiling as well. "Beautiful, healthy and in love," he replied rather bored of the topic. His mother had been panicked over the situation since Hera demanded it and he had spent the time visiting her children she didn't have the time (or approval) to see. For his part, he always enjoyed having a hand in love, but his mother's demigod children always found it themselves. Each one he visited had either loved and lost, were currently in love or working on their lusting love. Needless to say for him, it hadn't been an exciting month.

"Mmm," she hummed in response, glad to hear they were living as normally as possible and not alone. Though, in all honesty, she would have felt it if anyone of them were without love. Tapping her finger on her knee, she twisted her mouth as she thought about all of her mortal lovers that led to this point. Only for a moment she did contemplate regret or thought it would have been better to be more sparing; but the feeling was gone quicker than a blink. "You missed some of Earth's most wonderful writers and painters."

"Mm-hmmm," he replied as he bit into another apple, raising an eyebrow to his mother. "And how many of these writers and artists were your children?"

"That's besides the point," she tossed off easily, waving her hand in the air as she turned to step off the bed and stand with her back against him. Needless to say, the two understood that she had quite a hand in changing the mortals' view on love and sex. Even if she hadn't acted overly suspicious about it, Eros _felt_ it. Tapping on her bottom lip, Aphrodite was lost in her thoughts over the history of the mortal world and what she had experience living among them. She was unsure of how long exactly she had been standing there, thinking it over, but long enough for Eros to become bored and sigh loudly behind her. She spun around to blink at him and smiled slightly, realizing how much she had missed him. As she reached her hand out and placed it on his cheek, the door to her room swung open forcefully to reveal Ares in her doorway. The pair blinked in silence as he was clearly not a happy god.

"Out," was his first word to them, though his eyes were set on their son. Eros' mouth twisted in displeasure at being ordered to do anything and he dared his father by leaning backward and cocking up an eyebrow. Aphrodite glanced between the two quickly before taking a step backwards, out of the line of fire. Ares' red eyes seemed to flash a brighter color to insinuate his rage and he stepped into the room, putting his hand on the handle of his sword. "_Out_."

Aphrodite clearly was attempting to tell her son to vacate with her eyes but Eros didn't need to be told twice. When the god of war put his hand on his weapon, it was no idle threat. Sliding off the bed, the winged god quickly slipped passed his father who stared him down the entire time and slammed the door shut behind him, almost nipping the tip of his left wing. Giving the goddess no time to prepare for his rage, Ares spun to face her as he ripped his sheathed sword from his waist and threw it on the ground.

"You respect_ her_?" he shouted his question, turning away from her immediately as he did so. Aphrodite blinked a few times as she tried to think exactly what could have occurred within these passed few days to incite this and exactly who he was talking about. But before she allowed herself anymore time to think, she suddenly realized just exactly what was going on; _he_ was yelling at her. Her nose wrinkled up in discontent and her temper that had seemed to subside over the centuries boiled up once more (often a side effect of being in Ares' presence).

"And _who_ are you talking about?" she pressed him in her annoyed tone, quite peeved he had the audacity to yell at _her_.

"Athena!" he roared loudly, seemingly growing angrier as he was forced to say her name. Throwing his arms in the air, he kept his back towards her and crossed them, looking much like a pouting child. Aphrodite paused for a moment, wondering what her and Athena could possibly have in common to force him into this mood. She realized what had happened when his first question sunk in and she stepped forward, more annoyed than before.

"Don't yell at me!" she shouted back as she stepped towards him and pointed a finger; as he turned to face her, she jabbed the end of her finger into his chest and glared up at him. "There are _all_ kinds of love, not just between couples. Athena has a great love for women and all those around her. Not that I have to explain myself –" she added, blinking on that thought and suddenly became angrier. "Don't question **me** on the authority of love!" She poked him a few more times before he softly grabbed her wrist and squinted at her. Their relationship was odd, to say the least; he enraged her and she calmed him. Only together did they often experience the opposite effects of their nature and it was addicting to them. Her rage caused him to smile down at her, giving himself the time to enjoy her presence again and he pulled her closer to him. She, still annoyed he had the gall to order their son out of _her_ room and yell at her, fought back and pushed against him. "Don't - touch - me!"

He let out a loud laugh as she attempted to fight his strength which only made him hug her tighter until she was squeezed against his chest with no where to move. Her cheek was pushed up against his peck and she took in a deep breath, knowing he would not let her go until she calmed down. Closing her eyes, she counted to ten as her muscles relaxed and she looked up to him with a slight smile.

"Are you done?" she asked with a compressed voice and he loosened his bear hug on her as he leaned down for a kiss. Standing up on the tip of her toes, she met him halfway and the pair closed their eyes, letting them feel the kiss they had dreamed of for centuries. The experience from each one was significantly different, considering they were both experiencing the same thing: Ares enjoyed embracing Aphrodite for her soft and delicate feel. For a man who felt so much rage, pain and violence near daily, it was extremely comfortable to feel something in his arms so warm and fragile, like she needed protecting from the wind. Aphrodite could melt into the strong touch of Ares for when her eyes closed, she felt like nothing could possibly go wrong with him (though she knew otherwise). She felt she could let go of everything in her life and he would be there to make it right. Of course, the reality of that situation did not escape her – Ares often created more problems than he solved, but she still enjoyed the feeling nonetheless. She was the first to pull away, tired of standing on the tip of her toes and she grabbed the edges of his chest piece and pulled downward as she tried to land into the bed. Ares didn't immediately follow her pulling and grinned, letting her hang on him for a few seconds before giving in and falling towards the bed. As their clothes flew off their bodies and the bed, it seemed both had forgotten about the source of their argument.


	18. Chapter Seventeen: Fools of Pride

It was no secret why Ares and Aphrodite were late; the council had been called and the room was buzzing with whispers as the two seats were left empty. Hestia quietly slipped from the room several minutes before to find them while the rest stewed in their assumptions. Hephaestus sat without a word coming from his mouth, just staring at the empty seat of his wife's while Hera attempted conversation with him. The rest of them simply whispered to make noise, to create a less tense air, but their affair was less concerning than their blatant disregard to time – well, at least that's what Zeus thought. Shifting in his chair and sniffing, he attempted to keep his calm while he looked to his older brother who held the black orb. Zeus was impatient to hear the words of the Moirae and just as he was about to start without them, Ares came bursting through.

"Apologies," he announced loudly without much sincerity, marching straight to his chair with a small grin on his face. He was followed by the silent Aphrodite who was fixing her hair who was then followed by Hestia, whose head was bowed and hands cupped in front of her. Zeus clenched his jaw shut, resisting the urge to punch his son through the wall while his sister ceremoniously closed the doors. When the last door was sealed, she turned to the King of Olympus and they nodded to each other as she took her place next to the flames in the center.

"I call this council to session," he repeated himself as he always did at the beginning. Per usual, the words created a formal sensation over the room and everyone seemed to sit up a little straighter than before. Before any words were exchanged, Hera put her hand out and looked straight to Aphrodite; the goddess smiled and presented the list in her right hand. In a puff of white smoke, the list vanished from her hand and materialized in Hera's, who immediately pulled her eyes down to look it over. She seemed to curl her nose up when she saw the length. Hermes cleared his throat awkwardly, causing a few eyes to turn upon him and he shrugged innocently. When he and Aphrodite locked eyes, she felt a stinging sensation from him – like he was trying to tell her something she was unable to hear. Confused, she sent him a look that requested more and he simply looked away. She frowned slightly, glancing over to Hera once again who was without the list and looking forward.

"Hades, you have a prophecy," Zeus motioned to his brother and the orb in his hand. Hades nodded and put his hand out to Hestia who blinked for a moment, unaware she was to take it. When he nodded, she stood up and took it carefully with both hands. The Lord of the Underworld mumbled something to her quietly and she nodded, turning to the flames and leaned towards it; she seemed to whisper something to the orb that made a feint blue glow appear in its center. Like a recording, the voices of the Moirae appeared all around and repeated the words that had created the orb's existence:

"_Immortal sisters betrayed them all_

_For favor of the weak ones, they did fall._

_A mistake made clear - they turned on her:_

_Alone and dying, she begged them stir. _

_A war unseen, Olympus is key._

_But fools of pride, they do not see._

_Find the wild one to help in quest_

_Speak with her at her behest._

_A choice you have, a choice to make_

_To save them all, or them forsake:_

_The way unclear but victory in hand_

_Alone, perhaps, is how you stand._

_A word of this, we give to you:_

_Not all as seems before is true;_

_Listen closely or thus you fail:_

_In mortals, even gods are frail."_

Hades seemed to close his eyes when the voices repeated the prophecy, as if it were painful to hear it again. He had thought it over for quite some time now, on and off arguing with his wife over the meaning and trying to decipher it himself. With it now out in the open, as the last line reverberated in the room, he felt the weight of the prophecy lift off his shoulders. Taking in a deep breath, he opened his eyes to look at the rest of the silent room: Apollo was holding his chin deep in thought, staring into the ground as he searched for meaning while Athena stared into the flames, equally in thought. A scattered few didn't even attempt their own definition and simply looked to Apollo, Athena or Zeus for guidance. Zeus' eyes were still on the orb, which caused Hestia a great amount of discomfort; she looked to others in the room for someone to take it from her, even looking back to Hades who didn't make a move. Uneasy, she set it on the ground at her feet and scooted away a few inches from it. When Zeus took in a deep breath, everyone else seemed to breath and he turned to Apollo, who was still deep in his thoughts; he didn't move until his sister pushed an elbow into his side and he looked around, realizing all the eyes were on him.

"Ah," he started awkwardly, making a face of surprise before leaning back in the chair. He closed his eyes to think, pressing two fingers into his temple and sighed. "The Moirae are hardly this obvious, but they must be afraid. _The way unclear_? Even they don't see the future in its entirety."

"One line at a time," Athena offered plainly and softly, trying to ease him into interpreting the prophecy for the rest. Glancing to her, he realized his fault and nodded, clearing his throat before starting again.

"It seems our Sleep was instigated by two goddesses, who made a pact against us for the mortals. _The weak ones_ seem to indicate the mortals, but one of the sisters regrets the decision as they betrayed her. Somehow, the mortals are able to physically harm this goddess and in a desperate attempt to survive, she woke us," Apollo slowly explained, clearly working things out as he spoke. This explanation in itself did not sit well at first; while no one challenged his translation, the idea of the mortals killing a goddess was unsettling. When no one spoke up, the sun god continued: "The second stanza tells us there is currently a war that we do not or can not see. _The wild one_ is our key to who these females are, but –"

"Pan," Hermes interrupted loudly, causing Apollo's eyebrows to rise high on his forehead and all eyes to turn to him. Unchanged, he glanced briefly around the circle before nodding, affirming his own assertion. "I couldn't find him when I was on Earth. It must be him."

"And he's on a quest?" Poseidon questioned Hermes, but not in a demeaning way; his blue eyes turned to Apollo to see if his words were accurate. The blonde nodded as his eyes wandered over the fire and he stroked his chin a moment before responding.

"It makes sense. To speak with _her_ at _her behest_ – he must be on a quest to speak with one of the two sisters," he affirmed before looking to Zeus. The thunder god simply nodded to let him continue. Heaving out a small sigh, Apollo squinted into the fire as the next two stanzas were clearly not given the time necessary. "The last two are strange. Usually the sisters are strict in their words, but they appear to only know the future to a point and yet claim to know other outcomes. We have a choice between two options, we have victory in either, and yet there is a third option of neutrality or of _not_ choosing. And the last –" Apollo paused, shaking his head suddenly and leaned back once again. "The last is the strangest. They have never _warned_ us of anything before. This is also why I fear they are panicked: our choice must affect them as well."

"_In mortals, even gods are frail_," Hades repeated the line suddenly and slowly, as he had come to memorize these words and repeat them often. There was an audible sigh from Apollo who seemed to agree with Hades on something silently: that line was most displeasing. Simultaneously all the gods were reminded their fears of eternal sleep, a very real form of death for them. Demeter covered her eyes with her hand as she sighed, making the first movement and noise within the silent minutes. Ares shrugged as he and Aphrodite exchange glances and he looked to the majestic couple.

"Then we find Pan," he stated simply, surprised everyone was hanging on the last line. Hermes snorted loudly with a hint of a laugh as he leaned on the right arm of his chair, knowing such a task was not as easy as it sounded. "We don't exactly have the time to worry about that right now."

"I will find him," Artemis offered up suddenly with a nod, turning to Zeus for favor. Though she would not state as such out loud, she agreed with Ares: this was not the time to worry over a single line. Ready to leave the council now, she resisted the urge to stand up from her spot and simply shifted towards its edge, eyeing Zeus and Hera. The Queen glanced to her husband who still stared into the fire. As she reached a hand over to bring him back to reality, he suddenly broke out of his trance-like state and nodded, turning to Artemis.

"Yes. And Hermes will accompany you. Bring him here the minute you find him," he affirmed in an abrupt manner before turning to the rest of the council. "I will still need the reports from previous session. Write it out and give it to me after this. Council is finished."

The manner in which Zeus ended the council was slightly disturbing to the rest; Hera noticeably looked at him in a confused manner and when he stood up and turned to leave, she stood to follow. The rest of them sat there in silence for a moment, looking to each other for some hint that this was a joke. When Zeus and Hera were gone, Ares shrugged it off easily and stood first, marching out of the room without further thought to it and after him, the rest slowly dispersed.

"Hey," came Hera's voice from behind as he hand reached out onto his shoulder. She had followed him into his room and as he looked over his shoulder to her, he noticed her worried face. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," Zeus replied calmly and quietly, turning to face her as he put a hand out to shut his door. Hera's eyes flashed over his arm to watch him close it and she wrinkled her nose, not in the mood. She reached her hand up and put it on his face, staring at him like some answer from him would pour out suddenly. Shaking her head, she sighed,

"This isn't like you. You're too quiet - Are you even listening to what they're saying out there?"

"Of course I am," Zeus replied in a bland manner, obviously not interested in discussing the matter. His larger hand was placed atop own and pulled it from his face as he leaned down to kiss her – but she pulled away. He recoiled and glared at her, unknowingly squeezing her hand in the process. She placed her free hand on his chest and pushed against him, wiggling her hand free and took a few steps back. The silence was intense between them as both their minds were racing but neither wanted to start the conversation. Hera sighed quietly as she looked down to the ground, being the first to stand down in essence as she brought a hand up to her head. Placing her fingers on her temple, she tried to find another way to ask for an explanation.

"Zeus," she said quietly before raising her eyes to him once more and placed a hand on her hip, trying to be more assertive this time around. "Tell me what's going on."

The thunder god looked at her briefly confused, obviously juggling his annoyance with her and his confusion with that statement. "I haven't kept anything from you," he replied simply, thinking she meant the matters as of late. Reaching his arms out, believing her annoyance to be from feeling left out, he wrapped his larger arms around here elbows at first, then slowly slid them over her hips and back. Grinning down at her, he stepped towards her which forced her once step closer to the bed she was standing in front of. This time around she knew already what he was aiming for and quicker to act, she put both her hands on his chest and roughly pushed him back. It didn't have much of a physical affect as he had been standing rather firm, but he got the idea as his arms released her and he stepped back, his eyes filling with a mixture of rage and utter confusion.

"Stop it!" she snapped at him.

"Isn't this what you've always wanted?" he asked loudly and defensively, amazed and enraged he had now been rejected twice. After all, it's what they had fought and argued over for _centuries_: he didn't give her enough attention and ran off to other women. In his view, she should be ecstatic to see him so eager with her uniquely.

"I want to know what you're _thinking_," the blonde explained exasperated over the topic, unsure why this was so hard for him to understand.

"You _know_ what I'm thinking," Zeus slipped in casually and calmly, apparently trying to make a joke amidst an obvious growing argument. Unfortunately she didn't take it as well as he would have liked.

"About THIS," she seemed to shriek, pointing a hand out to the door that was shut and quite obviously meaning the council. "About Olympus, us, our FAMILY! You're not listening to them, you're not _talking_ to them! How are they supposed to see you as their leader if you just sit there and stare into the fire?"

"Lamb," Zeus called her as he sighed; one of the few nicknames he called her by (always in private), it was only used it when she was not being kind to him or others. It was his attempt to tell her in one simple word that she was being ridiculous without actually saying it and hopefully calm her down, but it had unknowingly created the reverse affect; she had learned to hate the nickname when she realized he only used it when she was mad at him. Needless to say, nothing had changed in two thousands years and hearing the nickname, her eyes narrowed. "There is nothing to discuss until they find Pan."

"Oh, there is _plenty_ to discuss," she replied in a very low tone, sounding more like a wolf than a lamb. When she didn't explain herself further than that, Zeus was left staring at her blankly as he tried to piece together exactly what she wanted out him while still figuring out how to achieve what he wanted from her. Drawing a blank, he shook his head and offered his open palms to her, as if to show her literally he was empty handed.

"I don't know what it is that you want, my dear," he finally explained in a quiet tone which set Hera off. She let out a loud groan as she put her hands up to her head, making fists that were placed on either side of her face. Closing her eyes, she left herself a few seconds to collect the thoughts that were racing around her mind. This was _not_ complicated in her view: she wanted to hear his opinions, to understand what he was thinking about everything and to know why he was so quiet in the council meetings. But Zeus had never been a man of words for feelings or thoughts and she clenched her jaw, realizing that even after two thousands years of him laying at her side, he hadn't changed all that much.

"I want a **husband**!" she finally shouted at him, lowering her hands from her face to glare directly up at him. "Not some horny pubescent boy too stupid for words!"

"What?" his voice roared with the strength of a powerful storm. The room quivered due to the power and it seemed some dust or marble dust fell from the ceiling, but Hera was unmoved. He pointed a finger directly at her face, glaring at her intensely as he tried to sum up exactly how awful that statement was, but he was at a loss for words. Truth be told, she was right in that Zeus had never been a man of words. He simply did whatever he thought was correct and when it wasn't, he _made_ it correct. It was because of him a lot of awful had come to the world, something he had certainly seen but would not admit, but he had fixed it all as well. So talking was low on his priority list, except when in the council; it was one of the few sanctuaries where word seemed to flow freely from all of them and it came easily to him there. Unfortunately, as a man of action, it was in these moments that he failed to communicate properly and was consistently at a loss for words. He had come ill prepared into battle with a woman who not only had an army of thoughts and venomous words, but could conjure another up quickly: Hera was no match for him in an argument. "How dare you!" was all he was able to come up with.

"How dare I _what_?" she hissed back at him immediately, stepping forward to show she was not afraid of him or his powerful voice. She reached out to push away his hand, leaving only an empty space between their bodies.

"You have **never** been a proper husband! You have cheated on me openly and mocked me in front of _everyone_! You think bedding every female before you is some – some _duty_ of yours while I be made to look like the cruel one for being angry!" There was a momentary pause in which Zeus moved to open his mouth, but Hera continued too quickly to allow him any words. "You _never_ discuss anything of importance with me! All decisions are made, finalized by _your_ word and I'm supposed to stand there and agree with you, no matter how idiotic and childish your decision may be! **I**__have played the good little wife this entire time. I have been faithful to you, supportive and nothing I do has **ever** been enough to solicit kindness from you until – until this threat of everlasting sleep! And now, you think fucking me all day is suddenly going to make our relationship better?"

Realizing he had fueled the fire by getting offended, he took in a deep breath to calm himself down and reached out to gently take her wrists as her hands had been flying every which way at him. He thought if he could just hold her, maybe she would stop yelling.

"NO!" Hera yelled out even louder than before as she threw her hands into the air, stepping away from him and she kept her hands lingering by her head for a moment while she tried to calm herself down to no avail. "I want a _husband__,_Zeus. Not a whore, not a conqueror, not a master – a _husband_ and a _leader_. _That's_ what I've always wanted."

And just like that, the door was open and she was gone. Before he could even process what had happened, Zeus was left alone in his room with the echoes of a very angry goddess. Trying to piece back the moments, wondering how they went from one minute to the next, he finally sat down on the bed with a loud sigh and put his face into his heads. He was _never_ going to figure her out.


	19. Chapter Eighteen: Never falls far

**Note: I wanted to thank all the readers for sticking with this. Your comments and views really do encourage me to continue and I appreciate it a lot. :) If you see any grammar mistakes, I would appreciate you sending me a private message with them. Also, if you like certain portrayals of gods and want more outside of this story, go ahead and let me know! I'll write a one shot side story on the god/goddess of your choice. Once again, thank you!**

As the hallways were filled with gods separating into different directions after the council, Hermes had been careful to avoid Artemis as he was on a mission before they left. He snaked past Poseidon who gave him a questioning look and tapped Dionysus on the shoulder. The wine god turned to Hermes, ready to ask a question when Hermes motioned him to follow silently and took off. Not one to avoid curious situations, Dionysus followed without question. The next was Aphrodite, who Hermes was less subtle about; he wrapped his arm around her shoulders and turned her to the left, steering her down the hallway as she let out a small sound and glared at him.

"What are you _doing_?" she asked purposefully loud, hoping to draw attention of someone else. She quickly realized it was only them two and Dionysus, who looked nearly as confused as she did. Hermes didn't bother to even look at her, instead keeping his eye out for the huntress who was probably tracking him down this very moment. Looking to his left and right like a paranoid animal, his grip on the goddess relaxed when they reached his room and he took his arm off of her.

"Did you really think I wouldn't find her?" he finally spoke up, looking to Dionysus and then Aphrodite. It seemed the goddess caught on quickly, her eyes widening slightly while the wine god still looked rather confused. Not bothering to explain himself, Hermes turned the knob and pushed the door to his room open to reveal Khloé on her back atop his bed. Her arms and legs were sprawled out and it seemed she had been sleeping or in a state of unrest until the door opened. She groaned and rolled onto her side, revealing her back to the trio.

"Why did you bring her here?" Aphrodite snapped immediately, reaching her hand out to smack the messenger god on the arm. He seemed to brace himself for the hit, somehow knowing it had been coming, and turned to her with a slight glare.

"It is far too dangerous to have her wandering amongst mortals," he stated matter-of-factly, thinking she should have known that already. He stepped into his room as Khloé rolled over to join the conversation. She reached a hand out to whoever would grab it and he was there to take it, getting a grip on her arm before she rolled off the bed and onto the floor. Dionysus let out a snicker, enjoying the show from the sober end (for once), which solicited a glare from the other two. He shrugged it off and crossed his arms defensively. Hermes pulled some hairs away from her face as he looked down to her and then back to Aphrodite. "She doesn't know what she is. How could you leave her without telling her?"

"I _did_ tell her," the goddess sighed, scratching her forehead as she watched the mess of her daughter reached out for Hermes in a very familiar way. He awkwardly dodged her hand by shifting backwards, blinking a few times at her before giving a childish apologetic smile to Aphrodite, who raised an eyebrow but didn't do much else. "She was too drugged to remember or understand what I was saying."

Dionysus suddenly seemed more aware of the situation as the word _drug_ was introduced into the conversation. Prior to it, he had assumed she was drunk but things were making a little more sense. He had little experience on the actual state of being high but he was well aware of what drugs were and how they were used on Earth these days. Keeping his arms crossed, he leaned in the doorway of the room as he watched the girl a little more carefully now.

"Tell me… what," the groggy voice of Khloé groaned out from the lump that was her as she squeezed Hermes' hand and the other reached out for something that wasn't there. Despite the frail state she was in, there was a sensation she gave off that was undeniable. Luring and addictive, she emitted the impression of complete freedom and happiness just by being near her. It was the reason she had sky rocketed to fame so easily with such horrible taste in lyrics and melodies. Aphrodite had been near this sensation for quite some time and had stayed with this daughter more than any other child beforehand, with the exception of Eros. It was common to ignore this reverberating sensation when upon Olympus as it as common, but on Earth it was magnified when surrounded by mortals with no such feeling. There was no denying it and a flash of eye contact between Hermes and Dionysus confirmed the wine god's suspicions: Khloé was a new god.

"What do you want me to do?" Dionysus seemed to grumble suddenly as he realized his value here was a mystery. It was no surprise to him that many of the gods didn't go to him for help in situations like this and he didn't blame them: he neither would be of any help nor wanted to help. Therefore he wasn't exactly used to being pulled into something of this matter.

"You didn't tell him?" Hermes asked in shock, turning to Aphrodite who seemd to be busy staring at the ceiling.

"Tell me what?" the wine god sniffed, floating his eyes between the two.

"You were too busy jumping from one college campus to the next," she mumbled defensively, her nose wrinkling up and her eyes slowly moved from the ceiling to Dionysus. This entire moment was strange as the gods were never very often ashamed of their children or so quick to hide them, but the threat of Hera was enough to make the love goddess falter. Pressing her lips together, she took in a deep breath through her nose before releasing the information through a sigh, "Khloé is our daughter."

The wine god blinked, his bright purple eyes flashing over the mess on the bed and the girl let out a small giggle and a wave. Needless to say, he didn't remember that night very well; it was true that his awakening had collided with the rise of alcohol and binge drinking parties on Earth. Since he had woken up until Hera's demanded sobriety, the decades were a blur. He remembered Aphrodite, seeing her at the party in the small fraternity house, but the memories just collided into a hangover and then the next night. He reached a hand up, scratching the back of his neck in awkward silence as he stared at Khloé, making note of the obvious eye color that was the giveaway. Waiting for him to make the first move, they all stood there silently until Khloé started to make a strange noise; averting their attention from Dionysus, she curled up into a ball and groaned loudly as she began to shake. Hermes leaned away from her, his eyes widening.

"What's going on?" the messenger asked, mildly concerned she might vomit in his lap.

"She's just coming down," Aphrodite explained without much sympathy as she was used to this. She glanced back to Dionysus who hadn't moved much since the news and glanced over to the goddess, recognizing the effects she was starting to go through. Aphrodite shrugged, crossing her arms as she clearly did not care about their daughter's physical state. "I can't do this now. Not with Hera watching me."

"I'll take care of her," he sighed softly, being one of the few gods who would be sympathetic to her situation. Hermes was glad to let go of her hand and back away quickly, glancing to Aphrodite for more information but received none. As he lifted Khloé up, she wrapped her arms around his neck and buried her face into his chest, groaning again. Dionysus simply turned to the door and walked out of Hermes' room, looking down to his daughter as he walked the halls back to his own room.

Nodding to the door to open as he had no hands available, it did so at his beckon and revealed to the pair a large room fit for a man of partying: there was a long, extravagant bar made from black and gold marble that lined the wall. A glass case was carved into the front of the bar and inside were three rows of bottled wine from various centuries, dating back thousands or hundreds of years. It was his personal collection of his favorite wines from the centuries and various regions. Behind the bar was the more modern flare to alcohol: there were glass cabinets and rows of hanging glasses, ranging from margarita to martini, various wine glasses and shot glasses. He had cheesy cups from bars with their logo poorly slapped across it and plastic cups from a few fun college parties. In between the two cabinets on either side of the bar were two large cabinets of hard liquor, proceeded by two tall wine coolers and then two refrigerators that held beer.

The center of the room was a large circle that dipped into the floor and the furniture seemed to mold in perfectly with the floor. A small fire was burning in the middle and all around the room, outside of the circle, was an eclectic collection of furniture from various centuries and cultures that was nearly as impressive as his alcohol stash. The ceiling was vaulted with a single golden staircase to the left that curved up into a loft high above the scene, where his personal bed and bathroom gave him a bird's eye view of any parties. Hera had not approved of his parties in many formal areas of Olympus but she had given him permission to build such a party room into his own bedroom and thus this display was created. Whenever he held a celebration, this was the room to be in. Khloé turned her eyes to the room they were entering and they widened slightly, seeing great potential at the bar. Dionysus casually walked through the furniture and beyond the bar to the staircase and ascended it without a word, even as his daughter attempted to move to look at the decorations. Upon reaching the modest bathroom in comparison to the room, he set her into the bathtub and drew the water. She blinked, looking up at him as she started to take off her clothes.

"The warm water will just soothe you," he instructed carefully as he turned away from her, grabbing a bottle of bubble bath from the counter and poured quite a bit in. "But you'll still feel everything. Thankfully less than a mortal would and in a shorter time span."

Khloé offered a simple smile as she bit back the urge to tell him she knew, as she had gone through this plenty of times before. His desire to help her was quite evident and she didn't want to hurt his feelings by shunning it, especially since this was the first time meeting her father … well, at least the first time either of them would remember. She dipped her foot into the shallow water and out again, smiling as the bubbles were starting to grow quickly. She cupped a few in her hands, staring into them and seeing a million tiny reflections of herself. She couldn't help but wonder how beautiful this would look on various substances, but she let the thought go as her eyes wandered up to her father once again.

"So," she began awkwardly as she slid down into the tub, trying to feel the warmth up to her neck despite the tub not full quite yet. Khloé sniffed and then blew air out her nose, sending a few bubbles into the air before she seemed to gather her word together. "You're not mortal?"

Dionysus' eyebrow rose as she stared her down for nearly a minute, causing the naked girl to feel quite vulnerable and uncomfortable. He was deciding whether or not to be offended she didn't know who he was by name or that she thought he was a mortal. He finally turned his back on her and starting searching through one of his cabinets. "No," he grumbled behind the open door. "I am not a mortal."

The girl pinched her lips together, realizing she had offended him and started to bite at her lip, nervous and searching for a way to fix this. "It's just – well, mom only told me about her." She was interrupted by a laugh hidden behind the cabinet and when she paused, waiting for him to say something and when he didn't, she moved on. "So I just kinda thought … and then I met Hermes. He felt so," she paused to think about it before putting hold of her hands over her chest to simulate a hug. "He felt like mom."

The comment caused another laugh from Dionysus who revealed himself from behind the cabinet with a hidden glass of wine. Not sure why, he had started hiding liquor around his room several centuries before the Great Sleep. There was something satisfying about having your own private stash where no one else could get to it – also where most of his favorite kinds of wine would be placed. (There was something satisfying about having your own private stash full of the best kinds of wines. The bottle was already open and it seemed he had taken a few sips before revealing himself and now was in much better spirits. Khloé smiled slightly, though the shivering made her look remarkably weak. As Dionysus took a seat on a stool, he took another swig before setting it down on his leg.

"Of course he did," the wine god started somewhat condescendingly, something he apparently realized and looked up, thinking about how to adjust his speech. "But it's not the same. The idea of Hermes feeling like Aphrodite is… well," his purple eyes snapped over his daughter and a grin formed across his face. "Amusing. It's just the sensation of being near another god. He felt comfortable because you're so used to mortals."

"Is that why…" she started quickly but her volume dropped off as she realized this perhaps wasn't the best topic to speak of with her father. Then again, her mother had been exceedingly vague about things in the past and this was perhaps her best chance to get the answers she needed. "he ... _felt_ so different?"

"Sexually?" the god asked loudly and unashamed, as he and Aphrodite were the least likely to judge or be shy on the topic of sex. When Khloé nodded silently, he leaned back as if to think about it first. "Well sex with gods is different. It's much more pleasurable," he stated simply, trying not to sound too full of himself.

Khloé glanced down into the tub and wondered exactly what she had been missing in Olympus all this time and why her mother had kept her on Earth. She took in a small breath, about to say something when another round of shivers came about suddenly and she leaned back into the tub, trying to let the heat soothe her skin. When it failed to make her feel better, she gripped the sides of the tub as she awaited the dizzy sensation to pass. Closing her eyes, she kept them shut tightly and tried to think of something else to say to get her mind off of the physical stress.

"Why do you live here?" she blurted out painfully, evidently her attempt to hide her symptoms failing. The wine god turned to face her with a towel in hand and placed it on the stool near the edge of the tub, eyeing her convulsions before replying.

"Olympus? Well, you think you know what you want, until you have it for eternity," he joked playfully, grinning at the girl with her eyes closed. She peeked through her eyelids, looking at him briefly before let out a quiet moan and sinker deeper into the waters. Pausing for a moment, Dionysus reflected on how unusual this circumstance was: never before had he encountered an immortal that didn't know his past, let alone much about Olympus. He let his thoughts linger over Aphrodite's specific care to keep her hidden and how that greatly alienated the girl, but just as he was rounding into more meaningful thoughts, Khloé pulled herself over the side of the tub and let out a half pound of her lunch earlier that day. Dionysus merely made a slight face as he watched her recoil into the tub and wipe her mouth.

"I'm sorry," she mumbled through the bubbles.

"Ah, don't be. It's why I don't bother decorating the bathroom," he laughed off easily, waving his hand as the bucket in the corner sprung to life and cleaned the mess up within seconds. He refrained from explaining his many hangovers and also bit back telling her how awful Hera is to him when he drinks. She purposefully speaks loud and creates bright lights very early on in the day; needless to say, she was quite a horrid woman to be around after a good night.

"I think," Khloé started carefully as her two different colored eyes watched the bucket move away without either of them lifting a finger. "I want to live on Earth. I prefer their love."

She lifted her hands out of the tub, grabbing bubbles along the way to hoist them into the air like a fragile globe. Dionysus raised an eyebrow as he watched her, awaiting more from her. Epiphanies such as these were never that short but rather indicated a much larger picture. She pressed her hands closer to each other, causing the bubbles to run down her hands every which way they could until her hands were clasped together.

"They …they have such a short time to love, to …feel to know to _be_. It's like… because they have a… short… finite end, they _experience_ more than we do. I could never dream to know what it's like for them… but I'd like to try," she finished off her disjointed statement as her hands fell underneath the water and she shrunk down, submerging her entire body once again except her head. Before she knew it, Dionysus was standing over her with a grin on his face and he leaned down, placing a kiss on her forehead.

"You are _definitely_ my daughter," he affirmed quietly as he stood back up and turned to the door. Looking over his shoulder, he winked at her as he added, "When you're ready, we'll sneak out. I hear London throws some wild parties."


	20. Chapter Nineteen: The Big Game

"Lost him?" Athena grinned to the huntress from behind the fountain, causing Artemis to scowl lowly as she stood up into a formal position. Athena had noticed Hermes slip out quickly and thus watched the huntress struggle to find him. It was one of the more amusing pairings, as it reminded her of the game mortal children enjoyed to play: cops and robbers. The thief was able to run and hide in the shadows of the night, using whatever means necessary to slip from the law while the cop used tradition means to find him and consistently fell short. While it certainly amused the war goddess to watch, Artemis was not equally pleased.

"Why he shuns his duty, I will never know," the huntress stated boldly, trying to regain her composure and handle over the situation. Still harboring a grudge for the venomous words Athena had for her earlier, Artemis had kept a cold demeanor towards the goddess and turned to leave without a word. She paused, however, when she heard her current enemy stepped forward, clearly ready to follow her out of Hera's garden. Turning her pale eyes over her shoulder to view her, Artemis noticed Athena's smile had faded into a worn look of seriousness. The pair seemed to have a wordless conversation as the huntress turned towards the war goddess and they stood, facing each other in the garden as the only sounds were that of rustling and wind. When Athena finally broke eye contact and turned to a bench, she let out a sigh and stepped towards it.

"I'm waning, Artemis," she admitted quietly as her hand traced the marble carving of the bench. Slowly descending on it, she let her eyes wander over Hera and Demeter's work, quietly reminding herself how beautiful this place was. Trying to stay focused, she locked contact with those pale eyes once again. "I remember the oath I swore and why, but I don't feel the same anymore."

Artemis' eyebrows pinched together as she judged Athena for a moment before her eyes turned soft. "You have doubt?" she asked in honest surprise, not used to hearing this tone from the goddess often.

"Only a fool doesn't know doubt," Athena asserted harshly, as this had been a point of contention between the two of them for centuries: Athena knew self-doubt was an essential part of overall wisdom while Artemis saw doubt as weakness. If a hunter felt a fraction of doubt before releasing the arrow, they would lose their prey and the game: doubt meant loss and loss meant weakness. The pair glared at each other for a second before the huntress stepped towards the bench.

"You made your oath for different reasons than I did," the huntress stated quietly as she placed a hand on the goddess' shoulder. Offering a slight smile as she sat next to her, Artemis' face seemed so soothing and friendly suddenly. "So I cannot pretend to know your struggle."

"Why did you?" the war goddess looked to Artemis abruptly, the question being delivered quickly and causing Artemis to blink and lean back from the goddess.

"Because young women needed someone to be on their side," the huntress answered after a few seconds, settling back into a comfortable position. Though the question had never been posed to her before, she was not against explaining herself. "There is too much violence and sickness against them without just cause. Hera tormented my mother during labor because of our _father's_ infidelity. Mortal women everywhere are used, raped and then they are blamed for their children's existence and they live miserably. I chose this way for myself, to avoid that fate as well as to protect those less fortunate. Young girls are not taught to protect themselves and when they are taken advantage of, I am there for them."

Athena simply nodded as she turned her attention to the marble stones of the garden that created pathways through the quiet bliss. The statement sounded familiar, both the words and the tone; a strangely confident woman who made a decision out of compassion and stood her ground. In this moment, Athena realized how envious she was of Artemis – to be able to stand so firmly on a decision and not waver on it, even when to waver meant to consider its legitimacy, must be comforting. The ability to not doubt yourself may be foolish, but no one could say it wasn't blissful. Nodding once again to seemingly nothing, Athena pat the huntress' leg as she stood up and walked to her right, further into the garden.

"He went to his room," she stated loudly before she disappeared amongst the pillars and crawling vines. Artemis sat on the bench a few moments after the statement was made, her own thoughts still lingering on what had just happened before her eyes narrowed and she stood up, growling under her breath, "Could have told me that earlier."

When the huntress turned the corner towards Hermes' room, she saw the door wide open but no one lingering in it. Narrowing her eyes, she carefully leaned against the wall and followed it as if she were hunting some skittish creature that would run off at any sudden sound. Despite all her concentration, she managed to imagine Hermes with a pair of horns on his head, chewing some grass and turning to her with wide eyes when spooked. The thought immediately placed a large grin on her face. Running her hand up against the wall, she started to lean towards the doorframe when she heard a sound in his room. By instinct she pulled an arrow from behind and loaded it between her index finger and thumb on the bow. Not quite thinking through her actions, Artemis jumped into the doorway and pulled her right arm back, straining it against the string of her bow and aiming the tip of the arrow directly at Hermes' chest. The god let out a small noise, almost like a gasp but more fake, as he put up his hands in defense and smiled.

"You caught me," he admitted slyly, clearly prepared for her arrival. She didn't immediately forfeit her arrow as she continued to stare him down, wondering what he had done in all this time. She let her eyes wander over the room before the arrow started to droop and finally she withdrew it from the bow. Now standing upright, she simply sheathed the arrow and held her bow in hand, waiting some sort of explanation. Unfortunately for her, Hermes was not one to explain his own actions, just those of others, and as he leaned down to finish tying on his left shoe, he looked to Artemis with a slight grin on his face. "Ready?"

"Always," Artemis mumbled while turning down the hallway.

Entering or leaving Olympus meant patience, something a lot of the gods did not possess in abundance. From the mountain Olympus there was a staircase that started at the tip of the mountain, most often covered by clouds for those who could see but hidden from the sight of mortals. It served both as a defense mechanism and a deterrent from trying to simply walk into Olympus. Besides the staircase, there were various other ways the gods could come and go. Hermes had the simplest manner and could take off from anywhere, flying up to Olympus or down to Earth with ease. He often carried those accompanying him since he didn't always have the patience to wait for their ride or descent. Unfortunately Artemis had never accepted his offer in the past and that didn't change now: he groaned loudly when she refused to be carried and walked towards the staircase. He walked over a bench and on top of a wall, giving himself a good point of lift off before jumping into the air and disappearing. Artemis glanced over her shoulder to see he had left and she smiled, turning towards the staircase and broke out into a run.

Artemis was somewhat surprised when she didn't see Hermes at the base of the staircase on the mountain and had only to assume he was instead at the base of the mountain. Keeping a healthy pace, she continued to run gracefully down the deep slopes without tripping, jumping over rocks or holes with ease and dodging between the trees near the bottom with the grace of a doe. As she moved out from a tree and more into open wilderness, she heard a familiar sound coming from behind. The feint flutter of wings working tirelessly to keep their owner afloat meant Hermes was on her tail. Turning to her right, she saw the god in the corner of her eyes. He blinked when he saw a grin form on her lips and within a few seconds, she had disappeared into the woods. His eyes grew wide, realizing the game and dove into the woods after her. Unfortunately he didn't have the extensive knowledge and instinct of forests that Artemis did and he nearly hit three trees before being forced to slow down. Squinting at the area around him, he curled his nose in annoyance. Her ability to hide in the forests only made him want to find her even more.

Hermes shot up through the branches and leaves, exposing himself to the fresh air high above the forest and searched for a way to trap her. At the edge of the forest, the normal exit into Greece, Hermes flew there to set up camp. Unfortunately, Artemis was already there waiting. Her grin caused the messenger god to sneer slightly as he landed in front of her.

"Took you long enough," she teased him as she walked passed him and down the path. Hermes huffed and mumbled something indistinguishable under his breath.

The pair was easily poorly matched but neither would defy Zeus' decree because of their differences. Artemis went about tracking Pan in her own way, assuming Hermes would silently follow and explained nothing. He did follow her for quite some time, letting the silence brew between them as he eyed her every move and wondered exactly how she would be any better at this than he. Whenever she picked up some dirt, the god came in closely over her shoulder to look at her hand; whenever she sniffed the air around them, he would sniff immediately after, trying to pick up whatever scent she had discovered. When she climbed high on a rock, he flew a little higher and when she pressed her ear up against a tree, he made sure there was enough room on the bark for his as well. Artemis would give him a glance every so often in an attempt to show her annoyance with him, but either he ignored the looks or they went unnoticed. Finally when she crouched down at the base of a river and placed her hand upon it and Hermes lingered over her shoulder and started to reach a hand out, it was the last straw; Artemis pulled out the hunting knife that rested on her belt and set its blade above her left shoulder, directly where Hermes' neck was. Glaring out in front of her, she sat there silently as Hermes made a small noise of surprise and pulled back.

"What the –"

"Let me do my job, Hermes," she warned in a heavy tone, pulling the knife back and setting it in the sheath. She spun around to stand and face him, placing her hands on her hips and glaring at him. "I cannot track him with you breathing down my neck and disturbing my every move."

Reaching to his neck to check for any marks, the messenger god regained composure and simply lifted an eyebrow to her. "I've searched this planet twice over. You won't find him with menial tracking tactics."

"Pan may be a god but a god of the _wild_ and a satyr," the huntress reminded Hermes in a serious tone as she looked down to her belt, adjusting everything accordingly. "Satyrs leave their mark all over the place. They are not clean creatures."

It was difficult for Hermes not to show his offense at her statement; this was his own son they were talking about and nearly all other Olympians were able to find their children without problem. Granted, it didn't occur to Hermes that he had many children and all of various natures, so it was no immediate slander from the others that he could not find them all. But nonetheless, his eyes narrowed and his mouth twisted in subdued anger. "So where is he then?"

"Close," she stated quietly as she turned to her left. Artemis' nose twitched and she quietly began to sniff, apparently aware of something new. Not bothering to explain to Hermes, she near silently jogged to the left near an open cave. As she put her hand on a tree trunk, she leaned towards it and whispered; the nymph that occupied the tree sprung forward and shook her head, apparently unwilling to answer the huntress. Artemis put a finger up on her lips, indicating that she didn't intend to speak but then pointed to the cave. The dark brown eyes of the nymph briefly glanced to the opening and slightly nodded before stepping backwards and disappearing into the tree once again. Hermes stepped forward to ask a question but Artemis spun around and put her hand out, glaring at him venomously. _You're loud_ she mouthed to him and pushed her hand out again, trying to emphasize that he not move. Though he was decently offended and took the time to glare at her, he did as she asked and stood still. She leaned forward and started slinking towards the cave, pulling out an arrow and pulling it into place in her bow. She glanced all around the entrance to the cave to double check for any unwanted visitors before disappearing into the darkness of the cave. Hermes pinched his lips together, less worried for Artemis than bothered he had to sit around outside and wait.

In the pure darkness, Artemis was rather blind, which was rather uncomfortable. Used to using her eyes to hunt, she had to get used to her other senses. Her sniffs seemed to echo in the cave and her hand pressed against the cold and wet walls. She could smell Pan's scent growing stronger as she stepped further into the cave but the confusion was over whelming; Pan was meant to be in the forest, amongst the nymphs of the rivers and trees. Suddenly on her fifteenth step into the cave, she heard rustling a few feet in front of her. She pulled the arrow and the noise of the bowstring tightening caused the rustling to stop. The huntress slowed her breathing down, trying not to make any noise to give away her position. She moved the tip of her arrow to the right, squinting into the darkness and within a few seconds she let the arrow fly. It slammed into the shoulder of the culprit who cried out as he slammed into the wall of the cave. Artemis immediately squatted down to avoid any retaliation and she scooted forward to feel a body on the ground. She gasped slightly, running her hand over the bottom half of the body; the fur gave away Pan's identity.

"Leave him!" the male cried before he made another cry of pain. It sounded as if he had taken the arrow and pulled it out of his shoulder. The blinded huntress huffed as she attempted to pull Pan towards her but his dead weight made it impossible for her to gain leverage. As her enemy's feet heavily pounded towards her, she was well warned in time to jump over Pan's body and pull another arrow. Drawing it into position, the noise of the string made the culprit pause again.

"Wait," he called out to her and clearly was not moving to attack. In her mind, she pictured him putting his hands up in the air, which he actually did not do. "Artemis, please. Let's talk about this."

"Who are you?" she demanded loudly while keeping her arrow at the ready.

"Hypnos," the male replied quietly.

"The titan?" the huntress asked, not bothering to hide her shock.

"The titans are children of _Gaia_," he replied calmly but laced with annoyance, obviously offended to be lumped in with such a group. "I am a nebïaids, child of Nyx."

Artemis' eyes squinted in skepticism as his words as she had never heard of the term before. She could only assume it was self-entitled or otherwise unimportant in the grand scheme of things. Either way, the elder deities had long ago disappeared from Olympus' view and hardly interfered in the world of mortals.

"The one you're looking for is unharmed. He's just sleeping," Hypnos explained very calmly, something inherent in his nature rather than his caution of the arrow.

"That's a form of harm," Artemis snorted as she felt eternal sleep was akin to death for them – or at least the closest they would ever come to it. "Wake him."

"I –" the nebïaid started and paused immediately, turning to look briefly at the wild god. As his mother was the titan of the darkness, he had been blessed with low light vision, allowing him to see Artemis' every move in the dark. Unfortunately this advantage had been blown by his clumsiness and her sharp ears; she still had the arrow drawn and she glared directly at him, something he found slightly chilling with the knowledge that she couldn't actually see him. He took in a short breath before sighing. "You really should leave. You don't have much time."

Pulling the arrow a little tighter, Artemis was insulted at his calm demeanor and the gall to tell _her_ what to do. She sneered slightly before responding, "Time for what?"

"My siblings are coming," he replied coldly. "And they aren't afraid to fight."


	21. Chapter Twenty: Brothers

_Author's Note: So my main goal with posting this story here is to keep a few chapters ahead of the publishing. It gives me time to go back and fix a few things before putting it up or rushing back to change something that affects a later chapter. But lately (as I'm sure you've noticed), the chapters have become very long, so it's getting more difficult to keep a few ahead. :) Perhaps I should just post them all at once, hmm? Hehe. Anyway, I hope you guys don't mind long winded chapters but they're only growing from here!_

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Zeus really hadn't moved much since his fight with Hera. In his room, he was now in a desk chair leaning over a map of the planet that was in desperate need of an update. Certain continents were finished, such as Europe and Africa, but the gods were still amazed at the western half of the planet and how vastly it had expanded. That was where the map needed help and Zeus, rather than delegating such a task, simply sat and stared at it. The main problem was that he simply wasn't concerned with it at the moment – he was still trying to revisit their fight and figure out exactly what went wrong. Two thousands years ago, he would've shrugged off her rage and moved on but that was also because he always knew exactly why she was angry. Anywhere from the conception to a few months after a demigod's birth he would hear his name yelled down the hallway or feel all the gods vanish from the room as she approached. This time, however, it had nothing to do with his infidelity but apparently his fidelity. Frustrated, he swiped his arm across the desk and all of the items vanished through his arm into puffs of smoke only to reappear a few seconds later. His blue eyes glared at the items as they each appeared at random and he pushed his chair away from the desk, turning to the door to see his brother Poseidon. His eyes widened in surprise before narrowed again, his grumpy mood taking over.

"What?" he grumbled loudly as he crossed his arms, looking dangerously like a pouting child. Poseidon couldn't help but grin as he leaned against the doorframe and shrugged his shoulders.

"You seem troubled," he put kindly. Zeus leaned back in the chair that groaned as it leaned with him and he ran his fingers through his short, shrugging it off slightly. The relationship between the three brothers was difficult to describe: they were close and yet extremely distant. They constantly were aware of each other's feelings and moods, yet rarely discussed them or tried to fix any bad mood. They all had similar issues with controlling their rage that varied between each one but they always found the rage of the other one hilarious (only when Zeus had to fix whatever mistakes or damage his brothers created did he not find their rage amusing). Therefore it was no surprise that Poseidon was grinning at his brother who refused, immediately, to explain his mood.

"No more than usual," the thunder god joked in a private manner, as he was directly referring to his wife as opposed to anyone else. Raising his eyebrows high on his forehead, he decided changing the subject was the best choice for the moment. "I'm surprised you're still here."

"Ohh, Amphitrite is mad at me again," the sea god replied almost sounding bored with the information. Zeus was unable to hold back his annoyance and rolled his eyes, causing Poseidon to lean forward a bit more curious. "I flipped a navy boat over on the coast of the Philippines but when she sunk a cruise ship, I yelled at her. I'm better off up here for a few days."

"Hmph," Zeus scoffed, only mildly interested in the reason why. Poseidon and his wife fought _constantly_, something that was evident in the tumultuous oceans and angry waves. The source of the argument was always something menial, not worth the lives of mortals yet the pair didn't seem to care. Poseidon coolly shrugged off Zeus' disinterest and finally invited himself into the room, walking over to his brother's bed as he plopped onto it roughly.

"I take it you and Hera are at it again," he suddenly blurted out, causing Zeus to snap to his attention. Furrowing his eyebrows, Poseidon lifted his hands as if to give up, but let out a loud laugh instead. "Everyone knows, brother. Neither of you are subtle about it."

"She's impossible," Zeus sighed loudly, finally giving into admitting the situation since it was apparent anyway. Lifting his hand to his forehead, he rubbed his temple to soothe the headache she caused him before shaking his head. "I don't understand how you deal with it. You and Amphitrite fight much more than we do."

"I don't know about that," Poseidon muttered on instinct and though it had been clearly loud enough to be heard, Zeus decided to ignore it. Heaving a loud sigh, the sea god shrugged his shoulders as he leaned back on the bed. "You just have to remember that you love each other and you're bound together for eternity anyway, so deal with it." The laugh that erupted from Poseidon was deafening and near immediate after his comment, making it sound like the funniest joke of all time. He leaned back and cocked his head back slightly to let his laugh fill the ceiling as well. Zeus only cracked a small smile but it simply wasn't _that_ funny.

"What lame joke did he crack this time?" Hades interrupted loud enough to be heard and for Poseidon to cease his laughter. Both of the brothers looked to the eldest of the three who had a small grin on his face. Poseidon huffed in offense while Zeus grinned as well and beckoned his brother in.

"I thought you would have left by now," Zeus mentioned almost as a side comment; not quite an apology for leaving him out, but close to questioning why indeed he was still around. Hades had rarely hung around Olympus enough to have conversations. The Lord of the Underworld walked in upon the beckons and as his brother flicked a wrist, a chair was created for him. He took it instantly as he glanced to his right and saw the door to the room close. Lifting an eyebrow, he shook his head with a small sigh.

"Persephone is pregnant," he moped.

Poseidon and Zeus looked to each other for a second, both exchanging knowing glances before turning to their brother for more information. Surely _that_ wasn't enough to warrant his lingering but when Hades didn't add anymore, Poseidon burst into a laugh and Zeus lifted a hand to cover his face for a moment.

"What?" Hades asked with a slight confused look, trying not to be offended.

"You make that sound bad, brother," Zeus groaned, trying his best to hide his smile, as Poseidon's laugh was infectious.

"No, not _bad_. Just – uh," Hades looked up to the ceiling and waved a hand in the air, trying to come up with the words to describe it. "Different." Unfortunately for Hades, his inability to describe his problem with his situation caused Poseidon to laugh even louder and the sea god plummeted backwards onto the bed, filling the room with his magnanimous laughter. Zeus was unable to withstand the pressure anymore and his lips cracked as he started to laugh at his brother's lack of situation – at least in comparison to the two of them. Hades took in a deep breath, momentarily regretting joining the conversation but as the laughter beat against his ears, he too was unable to hold out and he cracked a smile, laughing under his breath at his own expense. The chorus of laughter started to die down with Poseidon first since his side was starting to hurt and he clutched it, pressing it down as he sat up and shook his head, looking to Hades.

"You should be happy!" he boomed as he reached his hand out and slapped his brother's shoulder, giving him a rough sort of congratulations. Hades winced slightly, leaning away from his brother as he took in a deep breath.

"I guess," he shrugged, still not entirely on board with the idea. "But it's another god in the Underworld that I could do without. And what if she's like Demeter?"

The pair immediately recognized the problem Hades was encountering: Demeter was an over possessive, overbearing and powerful mother. Everyone had seen it first hand when Persephone was born and especially when the two married. Zeus nodded empathetically and Poseidon grimaced at the idea of Persephone repeating her mother's actions. As the trio became silent, Poseidon looked awkwardly between the two before pointing a thumb at Zeus.

"He and Hera are fighting again," he announced, causing Zeus to glare at him and Hades to nod.

"Yeah, I heard," he tossed aside quietly.

"What?" Zeus boomed suddenly, now getting more annoyed that the word actually had spread that quickly. "What does she do, announce our problems down the halls?"

"No, but she doesn't hide it very well either," Hades muttered quietly, keeping his comments to a minimum. He wasn't the most talkative out of his three brothers and was the least likely to start problems, despite much of what people had come to think of him. Much of his annoyance with his siblings and family had come from the way they saw him and treated him; he belonged on Olympus just as much as anyone else (if not more) and became enraged at his mistreatment. Thankfully, since they had all awaken from the Sleep, it seemed no one had judged his presence on Olympus or questioned his traveling up so often and thus he had been remarkably calm and happy lately.

"So what is it this time? Who's pregnant?" Poseidon asked with a hint of childish curiosity, as if comparing notes.

"_No one_," Zeus loudly groaned as he leaned his head back and into the chair once more. Lifting his hands up to his face, he pressed his palms into his eyes and sighed loudly. "And we're _still_ having problems!"

"I'm telling you, brother, let her mess around too. It'll solve all your problems," Poseidon replied with a shrug, completely ignoring the fact that Zeus did not admit to sleeping with anyone. The thunder god peeked at him from underneath his palms and narrowed his eyes.

"_No_," he said with deadly seriousness, like a warning to Poseidon to never bring it up again or try to implement that system himself.

"Are you kidding?" Hades asked with a raised eyebrow. "We are talking about _Hera_, right?"

"It works for Amphi and I," Poseidon tossed as a side fact, defending his idea. The idea sat in the air awkwardly for a moment as Hades and Zeus seemed to absorb the information before both realized exactly what he had said at the same time. Their eyes turned towards him and nearly simultaneously, they blurted out, "_What_?"

"What?" Poseidon asked defensively, jumping between looking at each other. It was difficult for the sea god to remember that while all three of them had been awake all this time, neither of the other two moved from their sleeping wives. Poseidon had the fortunate (or unfortunate, as he would say) pleasure of having his wife around all this time. Over the years he had come to realize many of their fights would subside if he had stopped cheating on her – or more advantageously for her, they agreed to mutually cheat on each other. Though in reality their fights had not changed in frequency but rather topic, neither of them were willing to end the agreement and had carried it one since. "Don't give me those looks. It's ridiculous to assume you can have affairs and she can't."

"Of course she can't!" Zeus' voice boomed loudly in contrast to his brother's, throwing his arms up in the air as if this was the most ridiculous thing he had ever heard. "She's the one that bears the children! Or now whoever else's!"

"Eh," Poseidon shrugged, finding the topic of his own arrangement becoming boring. Neither of their opinions were going to change anything about their relationship, so hearing their complaints was a moot point. He leaned forward, placing an elbow on his thigh for support. "Listen, ever since we agreed on this, I've been more in love with her then ever before and she to me. Can you two say the same?"

"Of course," Hades growled first though Zeus had been silenced. The oldest brother shook his head and leaned back in the chair, still in shock over the information. Reaching a hand up to scratch his jaw line, he looked down to the ground while continually shaking his head. "I've never understood why you guys cheated on them anyway."

"Says the guy scared of his pregnant wife," Poseidon taunted with a grin, glancing to Zeus for support who simply glared at him. Awkwardly smiling, he looked back to Hades who also glared at him.

"I'm not scared of her," he asserted in an annoyed tone, finding the very idea of that rather ridiculous.

"How _do_ you do it?" Zeus interrupted suddenly as he broke out of his thoughts, glancing to Hades with an earnest look on his face. Hades blinked a few times, glancing between the two brothers as he realized he didn't have an exact answer for that. Opening his mouth, he tried to start something but no words arrived. He sighed instead, bringing a hand to the back of his neck as he thought back a few thousand years.

"Well, it's not like I didn't try," he admitted immediately, remembering the few instances in which he attempted after they were married. "But she was sharp and caught me. I guess she reacted a little differently than either Hera or Amphitrite ... she was so... _hurt_. The pain in her eyes was too unbearable; if staying faithful to her meant I would never have to hear or see that again, it was well worth it."

Poseidon had to immediately resist the urge to make a joke over the small speech and only did so when Zeus hummed a response and nodded. The sea god glanced between the two, taking all of the effort in his body to suppress the grin that attempting to sneak upon his lips. To him, it sounded naïve and like a new lover, not Hades, their brother and Lord of the dead. Waiting for someone else to make the first move, the three sat in silence awaiting someone else to speak first and it was Zeus who glanced over to the desk and sighed.

"If only Hera were as easy," he wished aloud as he tapped his fingers on the desk. Before either of the two could respond, there was a knock on the door and even before Zeus could welcome him in, Hermes opened the door in a rush.

"Artemis is under attack," he blurted out in a single, winded breath.

"What!" Zeus roared instinctively, standing to his feet and pushing passed his other brothers to get to the messenger. It was no surprise that Zeus had become overly protective of the three goddesses who pledged virginity, specifically his own daughters who pledged to remain so for eternity. He had not, however, been overly concerned with their prowess in battle as he was particularly proud of both Athena and Artemis' ability to handle themselves. But the last line of the prophecy had been haunting Zeus ever since he heard it, affecting both his relationship with Hera and his ideas of immortality. If the gods were subjected to a sense of death beyond the Sleep, then the danger for Artemis had increased ten fold. Pushing Hermes out of the open door, he roared the names of three gods to join him: Athena, Apollo and Ares.


	22. Chapter TwentyOne: Ecstasy of the Night

_Author's note: Yep! Another one! :) In a story of a lot of seriousness, I thought the chapter before and this one would be a nice break of fun. Enjoy!_

Dionysus was remotely surprised at how easy it was to sneak out of Olympus and not bothering to ask, he would have heard that Zeus and several other gods had run into a battle. There is a good chance he still would have snuck out anyway, but in not knowing, he felt no remorse at all but rather delight at the ability to march out without much thought. Khloé was dressed to fit in: she wore a light pink robe she took from her mother's closet and she kept looking down at it, realizing how transparent it was and shifted it uncomfortably. Dionysus was in his normal wine colored robe, until they hit the staircase and he snapped his fingers. Immediately his robe melted into a much more modern outfit: he wore a wine colored polo and semi-baggy jeans. Turning to Khloé, she waited for him to change the clothes for her and he grinned, snapping his fingers again. Her mother's robe shrunk into a shirt that rose above her belly button, but a darker bra appeared underneath for more coverage. A jean paint-splattered mini-skirt appeared below and a pair of black boots that barely reached her knees appeared on her legs. She looked down and, impressed with his sense of style for her, nodded in approval and motioned for her neck and wrists. He hummed, looking her over as he tried to think of something adequate. They started walking further down the staircase before a snap was heard in the darkness and she felt her neck become cluttered. Raising her hand to feel them, she figured they were good enough and giggled, skipping ahead of her immortal father.

At the base of the staircase, Dionysus was able to call upon Iris for help. The goddess that arrived riding a rainbow was sitting cross-legged with her long blonde hair falling down her back and her chest. She was extremely pale except for her eyes, which were as bright and multi-colored as a rainbow. If not for those, she would look completely washed out (as she tended to wear white often too). She smiled at Dionysus as she stepped off the rainbow and stepped forward, placing a kiss on his cheek and he did so in return. She turned to Khloé and without hesitation gave her a kiss on the cheek as well and much to the new goddess' surprise, the rainbow goddess did not ask who she was – because she already knew. Turning to Dionysus, she placed a hand on her cheek as she looked him over.

"Partying tonight?" her soothing voice asked without judgment, but more like an observation. Unlike Hermes, Iris was a lot less judgmental of the actions of others: she enjoyed being the observer and watching what they did and why. She was less likely to say anything to other people unless asked and even then, she tended to scoot around the topic. It was one of the many reasons her and Dionysus were such good friends. The wine god grinned and nodded.

"Of course!" he bellowed, eager to make due of the night.

"Where to?" she asked quietly, glancing between father and daughter briefly as she stepped back onto the rainbow behind her.

"London," he affirmed as he followed her, stepping onto the rainbow and reaching a hand out for Khloé. The girl watched in surprise as they looked to be floating but instead had a foundation of light under them. Grabbing his hand, she smiled as she stepped onto it with them and felt the sure stability underneath her feet. This was something out of a trip, she was sure of it. Dionysus and Iris sat down simultaneously while Khloé lagged behind, sitting down a few seconds after them. Moving slightly as the rainbow rocketed from the Earth and into the sky, Khloé's jaw dropped open in awe and she leaned forward to watch the ground speed away underneath them. She could look anywhere: down, to the left, the right – it was beautiful. She let out a laugh and spread her arms out like a bird, closing her eyes for a second to feel the wind racing through her hair and over her skin, feeling the pure feeling of flying. Dionysus smiled as he watched her, slowly beginning to see the appeal of children – though only if they were just as carefree and resistant to responsibility as he was. Unfortunately the ride was short: without a few seconds, the wind stopped howling and the trio were sitting amongst old buildings in the heart of London. The wine god stepped off without a question and pulled his daughter off, thanking Iris and leaning forward.

"If you could return in a few hours," he hinted quietly and the pale goddess smiled slightly, nodding. He winked to her and with a flash of light she was gone. Khloé stared up into the sky, trying to see where she went and continued to do so even as her father pulled her out of the alley and into the streets.

After their entrance into the first bar, the night slowly became a blur. Dionysus was eager to get to the bars and start the party off while Khloé joined him, but searched for something more. It had been awhile since he had been to Earth and drank (he had slipped wine here and there on Olympus) and he was acting like he needed to make up for lost time. Ordering a line of shots, he caused an uproar from the crowd when he told the bartender to give everyone a shot of their own under his tab. Khloé's eyes widened as the crowd pushed in towards him, reaching out to thank her father and she suddenly burst out laughing, realizing how effective his presence was on a party. The music had become louder, the people happier and the liquor better tasting. Raising one of his many shots into the air, he sent a wave of cheers over the bar and everyone shouted back, lifting their own drinks and chugged as he took the shot. Seeing the rest of the room kept drinking, he turned towards the bar and grabbed another shot. Shooting it back easily, he laughed loudly and slammed the shot glass onto the counter, shattering it into many shards of glass. Khloé looked to the bartender's face, but the man only laughed in response and she grinned. She may prefer Earth for its parties, but nothing would compare to having her father here ever again.

It was surprisingly difficult for her to keep up with him: not a huge drinker, she was taking shots with him as often as she could, but she had to pass a few off to other people around her. Slowly throughout the night, she began to realize that his presence was overwhelming her own. No one was interested in drugs or anything besides alcohol and everyone was loud instead of introverted and quiet. His presence even affected her as every so often she would grab a drink and chug it, even when she had been looking for something else to do. It's not to say that she wasn't enjoying herself, but before the alcohol completely took over her body, it was a realization of being in the presence of other gods. By the time they left that bar for another, Dionysus was stumbling to the sides and was only saved by the grace of his posse who were on either side of him, keeping him from falling into the street. She trailed behind as she had found a few pills in the bathroom and popped them in her mouth while walking down the street. Unfortunately, an officer had been standing right there and grabbed her arm.

"What was that?" he demanded lowly, briefly glancing to the crowd to make sure he didn't startle them into helping her. She blinked a few times, realizing this was the first time she had ever been caught. Blinking to clear her focus on the man, she squinted and leaned forward, grinning and giggling inappropriately.

"_Ex_," she replied boldly. His eyes widened at her gall to reply honestly and he spun her around, readying the handcuffs. Right on cue, Dionysus appeared from the crowd, pushing away a few mortals to get to his daughter and he grinned at the officer, stepping forward.

"Is there a problem?" he asked in a dangerous-like tone, as if begging the officer to start trouble. If he hadn't been swaying from side to side, he might have been a little more threatening. The officer curled his nose up at Dionysus and the group, shaking his head as he continued to cuff her.

"Nothing that concerns you," he replied calmly but the situation blew up as Dionysus reached out to grab the officer's arm. He acted quickly, throwing his arm up into the air to get out of the god's grasp and he hit Dionysus' shoulder to spin him around. With the god's back towards him, he pushed him up against the wall and twisted his arm behind his back, reaching his free arm for his walkie talkie. "Big mistake, buddy."

"Ah funny," the god said as he turned his head to the side, still grinning widely. "I was going to say the same thing." His hand grabbed onto the man's wrist and in a moment of silence between the two, Dionysus seemed to have a twinkle in his eye as he looked to Khloé who just stood there watching, one wrist with a closed handcuff on it. The officer suddenly stepped back and started laughing, pulling Dionysus away from the wall and pat his shoulder. Dionysus slowly turned around to face the officer who was laughing beyond a normal amount: he seemed unable to control it and the laughter grew louder, almost giving off the impression he was unable to breathe. Stepping backwards, he wrapped his arms around himself and kept laughing, gasping for breaths as his face started to turn red. The crowd behind Dionysus cheered loudly, thinking the officer had simply heard a funny joke and they all pat the god's shoulders who had a strangely sober look on his face. Looking down upon the officer like the man was an insignificant bug, he enjoyed the mortal's discomfort before turning to Khloé and motioning to the crowd. She turned to look down at the man whose eyes were tearing up and she smiled, leaning forward to pat his head.

"Later!" she cried out loudly over the cheers and disappeared into the crowds. After that, everything started to run together or become a black out. They travelled from bar to bar, the group getting bigger, louder and more obnoxious as the hours dragged on. It wasn't until the sun was starting to rise that people even realized how long they had been following this party animal. Several were able to break away from the group mentality, but Dionysus was not quite done yet. In a public park, they all cheered one last time and chugged all that was left. Dionysus was standing in a fountain, swaying and using the center statue to support himself. Once everyone was finished, his presence finally faded from the mortals and some simply passed out in the grass. Others were able to use each other for support as they attempted to remember where they were and how to get home. The god jumped out of the fountain and sniffed the air, scanning the area for his daughter. He spotted her when a good amount of mortals had left: she was sitting up against a tree, staring into the sky with wide eyes. He slowly made his way over to her, using a few passing people for support. When he reached her, he put his hand on the trunk and looked to his left, vomiting out the last few drinks of the night before wiping his mouth with his arm and looking down at her.

The goddess had been watching the pair all night and it was right now Iris realized it was time to go home. Appearing before the pair, Khloé let out a cry and fell over, putting her hands up in front of her eyes. Iris giggled quietly as she reached her hands out for the girl. Dionysus knew to stumble onto the rainbow and he did just that – stumbled. He tripped over the slight step and fell forward stomach first. Spreading his arms on it, he simply sighed and lay there comfortably. Iris pulled Khloé onto the ride and when the girl nearly repeated her father but landed on him instead, the rainbow goddess giggled quietly and they were off once again. Seeing as they were returning to Olympus instead of sneaking out, Iri"s was able to take them directly there and landed them in front of the staircase in. She was only able to push them off slightly, but the angle of the rainbow gave her leverage and the pair fell to the ground almost like dead bodies. Khloé groaned slightly since Dionysus was now on top of her, crushing the right half of her body slowly and she moved slightly to get him off. As she spun over on her left and he fell down, she looked over her shoulder to see Iris had already left. Curling her nose up, she groaned out her father's name and weakly pushed his arm.

"Worthless!" came the familiar voice a few feet away from them and it was loud enough to turn both of their eyes to the very, _very_ angry Aphrodite. Her arms were crossed, her nose curled and her mouth twisted into a large frown. She had arrived quickly by the grace of Iris, who always had the courtesy to call upon someone to help him out. She had flown quickly to the love goddess' room, woke her up (which made for a bad start) and explain the situation before disappearing, leading to the very grumpy goddess that stood before them. Unfortunately, Aphrodite's demeanor only caused Dionysus to laugh and Khloé to follow, causing the goddess more stress and annoyance. Aphrodite stepped forward and landed a hard kick in the wine god's side, huffing as she did so and he only laughed louder, starting a brief cycle of kicks and laughs. Finally when she leaned down and slapped him in the face, he groaned and reached out, grabbing her wrist.

"Chill out," he groaned out quietly, like a whisper and she leaned forward, glaring at him.

"You are a complete _idiot_, sometimes!" was all she could muster up in the moment and she pulled her wrist from his grasp easily and put her hands over her face. If this had been any other case, she would have gladly left the drunken god to be caught by Hera and scolded into Tartarus, but he had taken their daughter who was still – as far as she knew – hidden from the Queen's eyes. Trying to think of a way out of this, she sighed behind her hands, "I can't get Ares to carry you. He's on Earth."

"Just…leave us here," he mumbled as he was slowly starting to pass out. Aphrodite groaned as she peeked through her hands and slapped him again, causing his eyes to open widely. "Whaaaa –"

"Wake up!" she yelled at him and leaned forward, almost getting their noses to touch. "I DON'T – HAVE – SOMEONE – TO CARRY –"

"I'll do it," Hephaestus grumbled quietly behind his wife, who startled jumped to her feet. She spun around to face the blacksmith god, whom she hadn't spoken with since their fight. She smiled slightly, trying to show her appreciation for the offer but he walked passed her without a second glance. He leaned down and was able to pull Dionysus up and over his shoulder with great ease. Aphrodite grinned slightly as his muscles were showing off perfectly in the moment and she bit her lower lip, trying to refrain for the moment (which was insanely difficult for her). He turned to Khloé who was still awake but just as useless as her father. Hephaestus sighed, grabbing her arm first so he could pull her into a standing position. As she came to her feet, it seemed she had forgotten to blink and just stared blankly at the blacksmith god who bent down and hoisted her over his other shoulder. Turning towards Olympus, he still refused his wife eye contact and walked passed her with the two gods on his shoulders, lumbering slowly up the sidewalk towards the gleaming city. Aphrodite briefly paused, tempted to make a run for it in case they were caught but her guilt from their last fight was still overwhelming and she followed him quietly, biting her lower lip in the process.

Fortunately for everyone else, Dionysus and Aphrodite were not the only ones that actively avoided Hera. Hephaestus slid around the left half of the council building, almost heading towards his mother's gardens. Near saying something, Aphrodite had to press her hand against her mouth to stop from questioning his already kind actions. When he stopped walking, he was facing an empty part of the wall and he slowly turned to Aphrodite and indicated his head towards the hall. She questioned him with her eyes, not sure if they were supposed to be silent or not and he quirked his mouth to the side – she was unable to tell if it was an annoyed motion or a grin.

"Knock on it two times, then pause, then once more," he instructed semi-quietly. She stepped forward and did exactly that and just after her knuckles hit the wall the last time, from that spot the wall began to pull itself apart into tiny pieces. Disassembling itself, it created a large hole in the side of the building that led directly into his small workshop on Olympus, which was nothing compared to that on Earth. Aphrodite peeked her head in, hesitant to walk in through a gaping hole in the wall but she was forced to as her husband started to walk in with the gods in tow. Dionysus burped loudly that was immediately followed by a sigh from Hephaestus and they walked out of workshop, thankfully relatively close to Dionysus' room. They did run into Demeter who eyed the scene skeptically but when Aphrodite started to explain the orgy they all had to cover it up, the harvest goddess broke out into a small jog to avoid hearing it. When they reached the large room of the wine god, Hephaestus had quite enough and dumped them in the center of the room on top of the pillows. They rolled a bit into slightly more comfortable position after Khloé mumbled what sounded like a thank you. Hephaestus turned around to see Aphrodite in the doorway and she was smiling, her hands behind her back.

"Thank you," she said quietly.

"For what?" he sniffed. "Covering your ass again?"

She pressed her lips together to avoid getting angry over the comment and she instead smirked coyly as she stepped forward racing her hands over his chest. Eyeing the man who suddenly became extremely uncomfortable, she stepped in closer and sighed. "Well if you're tired of covering it, you should undress it."

Hephaestus' face barely changed from the words, but it was very clear he was happy to hear the comment. The corners of his lips twitched and he seemed to gain confidence through her suggestion. A loud squeal was heard as the large god swept his wife up into his arms and carried her down the hall, leaving the door to Dionysus' room wide open. After a few minutes of silence in the hallway, Hestia appeared in the doorway and quietly walked in, staying on her tiptoes so she wouldn't wake anyone. She closed the door quietly behind her and upon reaching the pair she created a blanket for each, pillows under their heads and started the fire. She smiled while doing so, humming quietly to herself and enjoying the labor of taking care of her family once again. Every night or morning Dionysus would come home, she would sneak in like clockwork and make him more comfortable. It was often an act that went unnoticed and always thankless, but Hestia never did it for the attention. In fact, she didn't want the attention. She simply enjoyed knowing everyone was home safe and comfortable. Patting Khloé on the head, she placed garbage cans near their heads (just in case) and silently slipped out of the room, closing the door behind her.


	23. Chapter Twenty Two: To Arms

_Author's Note: Just as a side note, the term nebïaids are not official or apart of Greek Mythology. I made the term up to distinguish better the two groups in this battle scene in particular. They are still gods, just as titans are gods, but they have that term to separate them from the Olympians. :)_

"I told you to leave," Hypnos urged as he put his arm out in front of his large twin brother, Thanatos, whose dark grey eyes glared at Artemis. His bulky arms held the sledgehammer looking weapon at bay, but he was tense enough to swing it when ready. Artemis still had an arrow pointed to his face and she sneered at him, keeping the eye contact despite listening to Hypnos. She was clearly out numbered and she didn't have to look around to know that. Four of Nyx's children had arrived to help their brother and the Keres were flying over her head, waiting for some sign to swoop down and feed.

Artemis sniffed as her nose curled up in disgust due to the air being filled with the stench of the female death spirits flying above. The creatures often followed Ares, someone Artemis had come to avoid and she knew very little of the reason for their existence. They had large black wings that were easily signs of Nyx's children, but theirs were unkempt and tattered. They had terrible eyes and no lips, but instead large, misshapen and mismatched sharp teeth that were stained permanently with blood. Artemis had only seen them a few times and though they had often glared at her, they were scavengers not fighters. Zeus had decreed thousands of years ago that they could not feed off of immortals since there had been an epidemic; apparently immortal blood tasted better than that of mortals. Therefore they flew over battlegrounds, searching for dying soldiers to feed off of. As she briefly glanced upwards to the sky, the huntress had a terrible feeling they would break their passive streak soon for a taste of what she had to bleed. Locking eyes with Thanatos again, she took another step backwards towards the group of three behind her: Nemesis, Eris and Momus. Hypnos put a hand out to stop her from walking towards them as Eris raised her hand that was decorated with a claw weapon.

"Stop," he called out to his sister who sneered at him and put her hand down. Hypnos frowned at Artemis and shook his head, his messy hair waving from side to side. "Please, huntress. Just put the bow down and leave. We have no quarrel with you."

"You do now," she called out boldly, sniffing the air to smell the three behind her. She could hear Momus giggling under his breath and shifting from foot to foot. Tensing her arm that was still holding back her bow, she briefly glanced between the twin brothers before motioning towards the cave. "I have come for Pan and won't leave until I have him."

"_Eris_," Nemesis hissed a warning at her sister, pushing her backwards as the immortal had tried to step forward to strike Artemis from behind. Momus burst into a loud laugh and as Eris regained her balance, she puffed her chest up and stood inches away from her hooded sister, glaring up at her. "We fight fair," Nemesis growled under her breath, barely looking down to her sister from under the hood.

The commotion had caused Artemis to spin around and point the drawn arrow at the trio, causing Thanatos to grunt and Hypnos to step in front of him. High above, one of the Keres cawed down to the group and the rest started to follow, making horrible shrieking noises. It was a strange combination of screaming women and birdcalls, but the worst of both. Artemis took in a slow, deep breath to remain calm until the Keres had quieted down and silenced themselves again, continuing their circling overhead.

"Ehehe, Eris the backstabber, the wicked, the sneak," Momus chided up towards his much larger sister, who backhanded him in annoyance. As he stumbled backwards from the hit, he only laughed harder which proved to annoy her even more. Eris cleared her throat, attempting to ignore the nagging laughter from him and adjusted the rings on her right hand that she had stolen from mortals over the centuries.

"Listen to me, Artemis," Hypnos begged to her back, sighing in the process. "You are outnumbered and your own kind has abandoned you. Pan is not worth the pain you will feel."

Artemis clenched her teeth together and shook her head, too stubborn to listen to the god's logic. Spinning around, she let the arrow go towards Hypnos and it flew down, striking inches away from his foot. He let out a small cry and jumped backwards, stumbling into his brother's chest who pushed his brother out of the way and let out a loud battle cry. Lumbering forward, he lifted the sledgehammer into the air towards Artemis and she ran towards him, diving forward into a roll. The blunt end of the weapon slammed into the ground where she stood seconds ago and caused a large cloud of dirt rise from the spot, forcing Thanatos to pause and squint through it. Nemesis took a step back, hiding her face underneath the white hood and held onto her oversized sword, refusing to join in on a battle of emotions. Eris glared at her for a moment before jumping into the air with her wings spreading out, hoping to see the scene better from above. Momus laughed and clapped his hands together as he grabbed two daggers from his belt and rushed into the mess. Artemis had sat on her leg behind Thanatos and sliced one of his calves with the hunting knife that was strapped to her leg. He let out a large cry as he fell to one knee and suddenly became silent, clenching his jaw together. The Keres began crying again and one boldly swooped down, mashing her teeth together as she spotted Artemis running towards a cluster of trees. Artemis pulled an arrow as she ran and turned, shooting it directly into the Keres' chest who fell to the ground with a cry of pain. A dagger hit the trunk of the tree next to Artemis, almost hitting her face and she turned to see Eris grinning at her maliciously. Two more daggers flew at her and Artemis was able to duck behind a few trees, wiping the hunting knife on her clothes to clean it of the black blood Thanatos spilled.

Hypnos yelled something out but as Artemis pressed her back up against the tree trunk, she was unable to hear to whom he was speaking or what was said over the loud Keres who sounded angrier now that they were attacked. Closing her eyes, she took in a few deep breaths as she pulled another arrow from her quiver. Trying to listen to the commotion on the other side of the tree, she began imagining the scene based off of who was closer. The grunts of Thanatos were still off in the distance but Eris was close; the flaps of her wings were loud and nearby. Gauging her position based off of the flutter of her wings, Artemis spun around as she jumped out from behind the tree and, much to her surprise, let go of an arrow that buried itself into Eris' back. It landed to the left of her right wing, causing her to cry out loudly and fall to the ground, revealing the scene before her that had caused her to turn around: Zeus, Athena, Ares and Apollo had arrived on his bright golden chariot.

All at once, the one-sided fight exploded into a battlefield. Apollo was already shooting at the Keres as they descended upon them and Ares was letting out a loud war cry as he ran directly at Nemesis, who finally moved to join the battle. Athena's eyes were narrowed as she had her sword out, but she didn't immediately move. She was trying to gather the situation in a short period of time but as Ares ran forward, she followed him to cover his weak spots (which were in abundance). She slashed away Momus' dagger attempt at Ares' left side and kicked him with her leg, sending him flying into a tree. Zeus lifted his arm into the air and a lightning bolt streamed down from the sky, which was turning dark as clouds came rolling in, and his hand was prepared with the deadly weapon. Thanatos had turned his attention to Zeus as the lightning bolt appeared to his hand and raising the sledgehammer over his head, he swung at the mighty Olympian who raised his free hand and grabbed the end of the hammer with his large hand, stopping it in mid air. Thanatos' eyes widened slightly, realizing the stories of Zeus' strength were perhaps not as exaggerated as he thought, and the thunder god pushed the weapon and, consequently, the god of death backwards.

Eris growled while spitting dirt out from her mouth and spun to face Artemis, releasing a dagger from her hand. Artemis, caught off guard as she sent an arrow to a Kere swooping towards Ares, was sliced on the cheek by the passing dagger. She gasped as she sidestepped in case more followed, her eyes widening as her hand landed on her cheek. Suddenly, it seemed everyone knew what had happened: all eyes turned to the Keres, whose noses sniffed in the air and their eyes grew wide, turning to Artemis. Ares, who was extremely familiar with these creatures, wasted no time in volleying a knife he had on his belt towards the group of blood lusting creatures and turned to Apollo, pointing towards them. "STRIKE THEM _NOW_!"

Athena grabbed a dagger from the ground and threw it directly into the side of a Kere, but she was unmoved: all of them began flying at the huntress and Eris' laugh began to howl even over their cries. Apollo struck on of them from behind with enough force to catapult her forward, faster than the others and skid to Artemis' feet. The huntress pressed her hand against her cheek and ducked off to the side into the trees she had previously used and began maneuvering between them in hopes of getting to her healing brother safely. Thankfully, the lightning bolt had gone unused and Zeus hurled it towards the group; as it crashed into one of them, she was burnt and slammed into the others while the large roar of thunder deafened the scene. All of the nebïaids were forced to squint and sheath their eyes from the bright light of the lightning, blinded painfully by it for a few seconds. When they were able to look again, the sight before them was haunting: the Kere who had been struck by Apollo was bleeding, laying on the ground moaning while one of her sisters had realized her blood was immortal and therefore _delicious_. She began gnawing on the body of her bleeding sister and when the others realized what was going on, they began to feed off of the badly injured one by Zeus. The realization set in and suddenly all of the Keres were feeding off of each other, screaming and moaning simultaneously.

Unfortunately the nebïaids did not stare upon the scene for very long, as Nemesis rushed towards Ares as she lifted her large sword silently. Not nearly as disgusted by the scene, Ares was still on guard and spun to face Nemesis who he grinned at and lifted his sword to meet hers. The two clashed into each other loudly, breaking the spell and caused everyone to rush back in combat. Nemesis towered over Ares and pushed down on her sword, half her face still disguised by the hood. She leaned down towards him, looking to win until Ares laughed; she paused, staring at him and he grinned, suddenly pushing back with a massive force that had been absent before. Her sword flew up above her head, one hand still on it hilt and she stumbled backwards in surprise. Her hood flew down to reveal the marble skinned goddess and the deep scarlet eyes that Ares had come to know very well. The pair had come to know each other quite intimately, on the battlefield and off, but they had never contended with swords before. Nemesis grinned back at him, their different hues of red eyes staring each other down and the passion and ecstasy of them fighting was coursing through them. She lifted her large sword with great ease and sliced at the war god from afar. He was able to back up just enough to miss the damaging part, but a new scratch was now present on his chest plate. Raising his sword, he rushed in towards her as she was preparing her sword to swing around again. She lifted it parallel to her body instead and swiped across in front of her, parrying his blunt attack and she stepped backwards, laughing in sync with him.

Artemis slipped out from behind a tree to reach her brother, grabbing his hand that was offered. He pulled her up onto the chariot and close enough to him to lean down, kissing her cheek that was split open. As he pulled back, any trace of the wound was gone except a small bloodstain he wiped away with his finger. She smiled briefly at him before pulling an arrow and the pair turned their attention towards Thanatos who was striking his sledgehammer again at Zeus. They both sent their arrows flying into his back and he cried out, causing Hypnos to yell to his brother. The large black wings spread out quickly as the large god suddenly took to the air. Zeus' gaze looked upwards and he jumped, his spread arms quickly turning into wings and his body to that of an eagle's. With that, the pair disappeared into the sky high above.

Athena has intercepted Eris who had tried to catch up with Artemis and now the pair was engaged in combat. Eris was a close range fighter outside of throwing daggers, using the sharp claw fist weapon to scratch and tear apart her opponents. Athena was well versed in many different forms of combat; traditionally she chose a pole arm or spear for its challenging nature, but this was hardly the moment to consider that. Instead, she swore a shield and a short sword, swinging with ease and speed while keeping enough distance to avoid the metal talons. Eris was becoming frustrated, grunted loudly and sneering at the war goddess, who had a calm demeanor and fluid defensive motions. Eris spun around while extending her wings, brushing the feathers into Athena's view to disorient her and while spinning, step in closer. The war goddess raised an eyebrow, lifting her shield in the process which took the brunt of the claw attack and while Eris was confused, she pulled the shield down and jabbed her sword downward in front of it, cutting the nebïaid's forearm.

Upon the entrance of the other Olympians, Momus had snuck into the shadows to hide and look for an opportune moment. As he tiptoed around the trees, he watched the twins jump off the chariot and search for him. He snickered under his breath, dancing towards the next tree, which was closer to Eris and Athena. Noticing Athena's back was to him and his sister was losing miserably, he pulled out a knife to even the odds, or so he felt. Sneaking up behind them, he made sure to keep out of Eris' view so that she wouldn't give him away. He eyed the left side of the goddess, the one that was shielded from his sister and he lifted the dagger as he neared it. Inches away from crippling her, Momus suddenly stopped as he felt the cold of a thin short sword slide against his neck carefully. On his right, he felt the tip of what was a dagger push against him and the culprit from behind leaned up against him. Nearing his ear, Hermes grinned and whispered, "You're loud."

Suddenly the cry of Momus filled the air and nebïaids turned to him, horrified to see his throat slit and black blood leaking down his front side. Athena spun around to see the scene and only briefly smiled when there was no one in sight that had cut him. Knowing full well what had happened, she spun around with her sword extended and struck Eris in the knee who cried out, falling to the ground but not without striking back: her dagger landed firmly in Athena's arm, causing the war goddess to grunt through a clenched jaw and she stumbled backwards. Ares landed a nice slash on Nemesis' side but she slammed him back into a tree and sliced his face. It was clear all of his siblings were panicked over Momus but as a darkness crawled out from the forest and engulfed him, they all grinned despite their wounds: Nyx was here to help them. Hermes, seeing the scene, was forced out of the dark and prepared his short sword and dagger, running towards Nemesis still in combat with Ares.

High above in the sky, Zeus in his eagle form cawed at Thanatos who was flying higher and higher still. The skies were now completely filled with darkness and lightning was striking every which way. Zeus had to refrain from laughing at the foolish god who dared flee into _his_ territory but Thanatos looked down and grinned, opening his arms to reveal his healed wounds. The completely dark eyes of the eagle form widened, realizing Zeus had played right into Nyx's hand. Cawing loudly, Zeus continued to fly at Thanatos despite his pause and he lifted the sledgehammer, awaiting Zeus to come into range. Suddenly the eagle dived to the right and Thanatos huffed, looking around for the bird through the clouds. Though he was graced with sight in the dark, he was unable to see through clouds. Zeus circled the winged god and landed his talons in the nebïaid's back and slammed his beak into Thanatos' shoulder in front. He cried out loudly, letting go of his weapon and reaching back for Zeus who had already pulled the god into a flip and started diving downward. Thanatos growled out something indistinguishable as the pair flew back towards the ground amongst lightning, thunder and the dark clouds. As they broke back through the clouds and closer downwards, Zeus spun them once more and pulled his bloodied beak from the shoulder and released his back, causing Thanatos to plummet towards the Earth. His wings wounded from the sharp talons attempted to twitch and save him, but his arms flew out in front of his face to prepare as he crash landed into the ground with enough power to cause a minor earthquake.

Artemis and Apollo were momentarily distracted by the crash, allowing Hypnos to bolt from their arrows and towards the cavern that held Pan. Artemis noticed him running first and released her arrow, causing it to whizz through the air and land on his left shoulder. He cried out in pain and plummeted to his knees, putting a hand up defensively. Before he could say anything, another arrow was released by Apollo towards the fallen nebïaid and although it was on course to hit his right shoulder, it did not – a hand flew out from the darkness and grabbed it. Apollo's light eyes widened in shock and his hand went to grab another, annoyed it didn't land but he paused as the deep voice called out,

"Enough."

It echoed with a powerful resonance that all of them felt immediately. Hermes sheathed his sword and dagger, Ares and Nemesis paused nose to nose and Zeus who was standing over Thanatos' unconscious body looked over while wiping the black blood off of his mouth. Several Keres took flight to the skies like startled birds, flying every which way in a panic while their half eaten sisters moaned on the ground and laid still. Suddenly a very normal looking figure stepped out of the darkness, bending and breaking the arrow in his hand and letting it drop. All of the nebïaids ceased, putting away their weapons at the sight of him. Most of the Olympians were rather confused, staring at this figure that wore a simple black robe and bore plain black wings that were a hail of Nyx. His hair was a dark brown, his eyes were a bright yellow, but nothing else was remarkable or distinguishing about him. Artemis glared at him, skeptical due to his wings and his kindness towards Hypnos, but as she lifted an arrow, a larger hand came from behind and forced her to lower it – Zeus'. His eyes were completely focused on the man before them and his face portrayed a sense of seriousness she hadn't seen in him for a long time. A small shiver went down her spine as she realized exactly what seriousness had overcome him: he knew this god and he, Zeus the might conqueror of the Titans and ruler of the universe, was _afraid_ of him. Glancing to the figure, she lowered her weapon even more and averted her eyes to the ground.

"Release him," he ordered down to Hypnos who nodded immediately. Nothing seemed to change except within a few seconds he briefly smiled and patted the fallen nebïaid's shoulder. Stepping forward, he locked eyes with Zeus as he put his hands behind his back and waited. The others around them were gathering their things such as fallen weapons, or adjusting their clothing. Nemesis had stirred Thanatos who groaned loudly. Frowning beneath her hood, she bent down and pulled the large male into her arms. Momus stifled a snicker and started to make a comment but he was smacked from behind by Eris and they all took off into the sky. The Olympians looked up to watch them fade into the darkness above and back down to the figure before them. Hypnos had already vanished.

"Be careful, Zeus," the brunette remarked with a raised eyebrow. "You are gambling more than you know."

The thunder god clenched his jaw to refrain from remarking or demanding more and the mysterious man simply grinned slightly, stepping backwards into the darkness of the mouth of the cave and seemingly vanished. Almost instantaneously Pan arrived through the cave, holding his head and groaning like he had woken up with a bad hangover. He didn't look any different than the gods had known him: the legs of a goat, large protruding horns through his curling brown hair, a sash over his chest made of various trees and a belt that held small weapons and useful trinkets. His fur was dusty, no doubt from the years in the cave and as he shook the bottom half of his body, a few spiders jumped out and ran off. None of the Olympians immediately moved as they were startled by the sudden halt in the battle and the blatant warning from a man none of them knew. Apollo was finally the one to blink out of their coma-like state and stepped forward.

"You all right?" he asked quietly, reaching a hand out to touch the god's forehead. Pan bleated quietly, reaching a hand up to brush Apollo's away and he opened his eyes, squinting at the group.

"What happened?" he croaked out, making a slight face at the sound of his voice and clearing it immediately after. Hermes crossed his arms and gave Pan a very fatherly judgmental look, something Zeus couldn't help but notice and slightly grin.

"You should be answering that question, not us," the messenger god called out, giving Pan reason to look to him with a blank stare for a moment. "Why did Nyx and her children attack us when trying to get to you?"

Hermes' question seemed to elicit an onslaught of memories in the saytr for his eyes grew large and his face turned to panic. Turning around, he ran back into the cave as he shouted, "Rhea!" All the Olympians seemed to jump into action, worried that he was simply walking directly into a trap again. Apollo was the closest and able to grab his arm, pulling him backwards with a strong force. Pan turned to face the sun god and began struggling against him, wiggling his arm from the sun god's grasp. Hermes landed behind Pan at the front of the cave and stuck his arms out, stopping the satyr in his tracks with force and a glare.

"What are you doing?" he yelled out, pushing him backwards towards the others who had him now surrounded. "You were forced to sleep in there!"

"So was Rhea!" Pan yelled out defensively, briefly glancing around him and realizing force was not going to help him win. He pointed to the mouth of the cave as he stepped towards Hermes. "Why do you think they stopped me _here_? And attacked to stop you from waking me? I found her – I found _Rhea_ and she's sleeping too!"

"Wait," Zeus interrupted as he put up his hands, his face blatantly showing his confusion over the sudden concern for his titan mother. "What does Rhea have to do with you?"

Pan tilted his head to the sky and groaned in exasperation as he turned to face the rest of the group. Pointing to the ground, he looked at them skeptically. "You can't hear that?"

The silence that immediately followed that question was the all the answer Pan needed. His nose twitched and his tail shook as he brought his hands to his head and scratched at his scalp. He had always separated himself from the Olympians due to his close nature to the Earth and held a grudge against those that didn't realize how important nature was to them and the mortals. Closing his eyes, he concentrated on not yelling at them for their ignorance (as that never went over well) and let his arms drop to his waist. He took in a deep, slow breath, as if preparing to explain something overly complicated to a child.

"Gaia is in pain, she's _crying_. Rhea is the communicator between her and Nyx and to stop Gaia from going back on her word, Hypnos put Rhea to sleep. Here. In this cave. Now let me in so I can wake her up and –"

"Wait, wait, wait," Ares said loudly, putting a hand up to shut the satyr up, who glared at the war god fiercely. It was safe to say that everyone was just as confused as he was, but no one was willing to say it. "Gaia going back on her word? What word? And what the hell does this Hypnos have anything to do with them?" Athena put a hand up to her face, sighing as she realized Ares knew very little of the immortal world before he was born. Zeus had to refrain from laughing at Athena's reaction, though he was much less annoyed than she was; he had no intention of ever explaining things to his children since he had become paranoid of someone trying to overthrow him. Giving any sort of detailed explanation of his history and earlier might give certain gods ideas – such as Ares. So leaving that particular god in the dark had been a strategy of his since he was born. Pan was much more blatantly annoyed at Ares than anyone else and grinded his teeth together, extremely anxious to finish out his quest.

"_Immortal sisters betrayed them all_," Apollo suddenly said, his eyes turned upwards towards the sky. His tone indicated he was piecing it all together and Artemis looked up at him, nodding as she realized where he was going with this. "_Find the wild one to help in quest. Speak with her and her behest_. It was Nyx and Gaia that started the Great Sleep and Gaia has changed her mind. We need him to wake Rhea up to explain what's going on."

"_Yes_," Pan asserted, annoyed, though remotely glad someone had finally caught on. Seeing that as his cue to continue, he walked between Hermes and Apollo towards the cave but the blonde god stopped him once again. Ready to bite his arm, Pan turned to him but Apollo was already whistling to his chariot. Around the corner, hidden from the battle, the two bright horses marched their way with the golden chariot in tow.

"They will light the way," he offered rhetorically, since he wasn't going to take no for an answer. Pan raised an eyebrow, knowing he was unable to refuse the offer but didn't have to ride the chariot. He didn't approve of using animals in such a manner. Artemis stepped up onto the chariot first and glanced to Pan, daring him to challenge – which he did not do, of course. Apollo grinned and quietly boarded the chariot. Zeus nodded to them and the rest of the Olympians walked in back, following the bright chariot that followed Pan into the dark cave.


	24. Chapter Twenty Three: Will Set You Free

_Author's Note: Sorry this took so long. :) Not only is it a long chapter, but I'm planning / decorating for my Halloween party, which is themed as .. guess .. Greek Mythology! Hehe should be a blast._

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Persephone had never been in the Underworld alone and even with all the freedom to come and go as she pleased, it was pretty boring. The servants were - as always - obedient, quiet and not good conversationalists. Most of them were fairly scared to offend her due to an incident many centuries ago. There had been a creature of deception, small elfish looking things with dark skin and large, black eyes who often tricked souls into wandering the wrong way or trying to escape. Hades had allowed them their freedom because it challenged the souls to pick the right course of action, further separating those that were good and those not, or unprepared for death. But often these creatures would turn their attentions to others, picking on Charon or any mortal that wandered into the Underworld. One of these creatures decided to test Persephone's knowledge and strength.

He tried to convince Persephone to drink from the river Lethe, which would cause horrid forgetfulness. The problem was the creature had too been deceived by her and Hades' ruse of kidnapping and thought her ignorant of the world below. Though she was no expert, the Queen was very aware of the rivers and their powers. She played along, following the skinny thing every which way, allowing herself to get lost to see what it was he would convince her to do. When he told her drinking the river would increase her powers and allow her to fight off Hades, she laughed at him and walked away. When she retold the story to Hades, he exploded with rage and threw the creature into the pit of Tartarus, yelling a decree to the rest of the Underworld that Persephone was their Queen and to be treated as such.

Since then, no one had dared test her resolve, intelligence or even speak out against her. It was for that reason that she had been left alone while wandering the Underworld, though it seemed endless and pointless. In reality, she was searching for a way out but was too embarrassed to ask anyone for help. Hades had gone to the council days ago and not returned since, leaving her more worried as time went on. Determined to find out what could possibly be wrong, she had made the decision to go to Olympus and ask herself. That proved much more difficult when she stepped out of the palace and realized she had never left or entered the Underworld alone; either her husband or Hermes guided her along the way, which had just become tradition over time. As the hours dragged on and the souls in the Asphodel meadows stared, Persephone began to realize she was not going to simply stumble upon an exit. After all, if it were that simple, the dead would wander the Earth and those tortured in Tartarus would quickly leave it. Squinting up as she approached a wall, Persephone placed her hand on the cold black stone and stared upwards, looking for an end to it. Without much light, she assumed the grand wall would lead her to the main gate and she began to follow it, sighing to herself.

She always did this; she was too stubborn to ask for help and simply did as she wanted, but ended up lost and wishing someone would come along to help her. Dragging her fingertips along the wall, she looked down to the ground and then around her, watching the souls wander the fields endlessly. She paused in her step to stare into the crowd of thousands upon thousands of souls. Some stood, staring off into the nothingness that was around them, others moved every so often and fewer kept moving, as if their movement made life and purpose here. Persephone frowned, wondering just how awful the lack of purpose and feeling would feel to her. Impossible to imagine, she struggled with it for a few minutes and slowly moved on to wondering why she had never pitied them before. Mortals have such a short time to do everything they would want to in their life and if they don't achieve it, they are stuck for eternity in this field, wondering what their life could have been. Placing a hand on her already protruding stomach, she pressed a hand against the growing baby immortal and wordlessly reminded herself how lucky she was to not have to imagine the death of her child or a life without it. The worries that mortals carried throughout their lives were lost on her completely and as she forced herself to continue walking, she closed her eyes and tried to ignore the unavoidable sadness over the topic.

Up ahead a powerful roar finally distracted the Queen and her head snapped upwards into attention. Still unable to see beyond the wall, she picked up her pace to discover what could possibly have upset Cerberus. As she followed the wall that turned to the left, she could see the large black gates lit by various fires placed high on the top and low, on the ground to light the wall. She squinted as the scene up ahead, trying to make out the three figures that stumbled backwards and pointed to Cerberus, who was roaring, stomping and snapping his jaws. One of his back legs slammed on top of a soul and he ground them into the dirt. Persephone felt a shiver crawl up her spine as she averted her eyes from the large creature's foot and she walked towards the three figures, who had now turned to see her. One by one, they bowed, ignoring the scene that had distressed them a few seconds earlier. She frowned as she finally recognized their faces: Rhadamanthys, Aeacus and Minos, the three judges of souls and formal mortal kings. All of them were granted their robes and crowns in the afterlife, allowing them to hang onto a portion of their mortal glory.

"My good kings," she spoke out rather quietly for a Queen, still approaching the bowed three while her eyes wandered over to the crowded gates and stressed Cerberus. By nature, Rhadamanthys had reached out to take Persephone's hand and kissed the top, provoking the rest to do so as well. She blinked slightly, glancing down for a moment before trying to make sense of the noise. "What is going on?"

"A great tragedy," Minos announced as he stepped forward, pointing to the crowds of souls that pushed, screamed and cried at the gates. Cerberus let out a great roar once more, two of his heads looking up to the ceiling while one menacingly snapped downwards at the crowds. They all backed off, turning their voices to mumbling and their feet steady. "So many mortals have died at once. There is no sense of control."

"Charon took them all at once," Aeacus grumbled, obviously blaming the ferryman for their predicament. Persephone glanced to the outspoken king, who recoiled between the other two and turned his gaze to the ground.

Charon was one of the only inhabitants of the Underworld that spoke to her freely and for that, she truly appreciated him. When leaving the Underworld, Hades would put her in his company until they reached Hermes on the other side, and vice versa. Contrary to his worry, Persephone was not offended by the statement but rather had just realized what she should have been doing the entire time.

Waving to the three, she took off in the direction of the crowd, ignoring the cries of the dead mortal kings behind her. She reached up to pat Cerberus' leg as she passed him by, causing the great dog's tail to wag a few times before he snapped at another restless soul. Feeling a magical power emanating off of her, the souls moved aside as Persephone walked through. Even those that cried or screamed that this was a mistake stopped to stare at her and moved, dumbfounded by her presence. As someone who had barely walked the lands of the dead, she found the sensation quite eerie; she stared back a few times, but otherwise opted to look straight ahead and continue on, both out of a regal sensation and the fearsome feeling the hollow eyes lent her.

When she finally passed the edge of the group and was able to sigh some relief, Persephone was able to recognize the scene in front of her: the large river before her was black in color and wide enough to trick the eye into thinking it was the ocean. As she slowly approached the edge of Acheron, the rocks blew passed her feet and a wind from seemingly nowhere whistled in her direction. Her long hair blew backwards and she closed her eyes, feeling the stale air blow towards her in a calming manner. The thick water of the river was forced into small waves by the approaching boat that was much larger than she remembered it. Charon's small vessel had turned into a large cruise ship of sorts, but not one that many would likely enjoy to climb upon. It looked to be made of different wood from all over, collected together in a desperate attempt to expand for the growing populace above. There were no windows but simply the deck and a large bridge that fell from the side of the ship to reveal a large doorway in. The ramp slammed into the black rocks causing hundreds of them to fly every which way and Persephone put a hand up to stop them from hitting her face. In the darkened doorway that led into the ship, a figure approached from within, holding his arms out and a large smile on his weathered and tired face.

"My Queen!" he shouted happily as he stepped down the ramp, his arms still spread wide as if waiting for a hug. Persephone smiled up at him and slowly approached the edge of the ramp, still debating if she wanted to leave bad enough to board this vessel. Charon was a very tall figure who looked just as human or god-like as anyone else, minus the lacking glow of his skin. He had always been skinny but it seemed the years had worn him down and his arms were much less built than before. He had deep grey eyes and short brown hair, both of which he often liked to hide under a hood to scare the newcomers. Of all things the Queen had come to adore about the ferryman, it was his sense of humor, something that was often lacking in the Underworld. The myths were true that he was a greedy man, demanding money from the dead in order to ferry them over the river, but the end joke was that there was nothing to do done with any of it. He was always working therefore never had the time to roam the mortal world to spend the money, but he took it all the same. He played the menacing figure under a black cloak and croaked about the terrible fate that awaited you on the long ride over the river. A few times Persephone was able to sit in on his show and always had to hide her face to avoid from laughing.

As she neared him, she put her arms out to join in on the hug. She had nearly forgotten that while she slept, the entire kingdom below had mourned what was the closest thing to her death. For all the time she dreamed and tossed in the bed, Charon continued his work of moving souls across the river, teasing them and taking their money, without knowing if she would wake up or if he would even be able to look upon her sleeping face again. Smiling, she felt a soothing warmth from him as they hugged and his grip was tight at first, reminding her of how precious things were now that immortality was a fragile concept.

"It's good to see you again," he said very quietly and seriously, a tone that was often used when joking to the new souls. As they pulled away, she placed a hand on his cheek and he smiled for a moment, before he took in a deep breath and pulled away, motioning her into the ship. "So what brings you here without our Lord?"

"He's on Olympus," she replied immediately while looking around at her surroundings, missing the look Charon glanced her, surprised he left down here alone. Shrugging it off, he snapped his fingers and the lights within the boat grew brighter, lighting their way up to the deck. "Charon, I need to find out how to get out of here without him."

Once again, the grey eyes turned to his Queen with skepticism. As her eyes met his own, the pair paused and stared at each other in an awkward silence. She was waiting for an answer and he was waiting for her to start laughing and when neither had their desired result, Charon cracked a grin.

"My Lady, you may leave whenever you wish," Charon answered simply, obviously attempting not to laugh at her for fear of offending. She squinted at him, looking for a sign of his joking manner and she waved a hand in the air, sighing quietly.

"Please, I'm not in the mood," she mumbled as a hand rubbed the upper half of her belly. The tall man paused in his step up the stairs towards the deck and motioned for her to follow, which she did.

"I am not joking," he replied casually while his hand traced at the banner, each foot causing the wood underneath to groan. When they reached the top, one could see over the large black river and the view was hauntingly beautiful. The waters were utterly still except for the movement of the ship, causing small rifts that disappeared with the horizon. Persephone smiled as she looked upon the scene, remembering the many times she took this trip back and forth, feeling something different each time. Her trips below were always anxious, as she had for the longest time withstood the Underworld to be with Hades, rather than enjoying it as he did. It had taken her centuries to befriend anyone or see this place for what beauty it did possess.

Over the years, the darkness had slowly become comfortable and inviting, like a place of pure quiet and calm that she could escape to. It was a usually a stress relief from the world above, where gods bickered and quarreled over meaningless words or the offensive words of a mortal. Down here, the world cared little for fights or hubris, as their time would come eventually and they would have to submit to death. Since then, her trips back to Olympus became more frightful and distressing, causing her to wonder what terrible afflictions her family would reign upon Earth and what horrid things her mother would have to say about her husband. Leaning her elbow on the side of the ship, Persephone smiled at the many memories she had floating across this river. Forgetting the topic at hand for a moment, Charon had to lean against the side next to her to remind her of his presence and he grinned as she jumped slightly.

"You have always had the ability to come and go as you please," he added quietly, turning his sight to the black waters. "You gained that ability when you married our Lord. Did he not tell you?"

Persephone's eyes narrowed at Charon, trying to find some hint of playfulness or joking before she shook her head. She casually avoided answering him out loud, not wanting to elicit more questions as to why Hades would keep anything from her. Though she naturally assumed the topic simply hadn't come up (and why should it, when he and Hermes always accompanied her), she had already let the question sink into her mind and now was riddled with the curiosity. The ferryman, who knew better than to tease her, smiled and pointed towards the edge of the river where they were nearing.

"You'll find it opens for you as you wish," he explained to her carefully, eyeing the area as he recalled in his mind the few times Hades has opened the portal to leave them. Persephone's lips pressed together as she looked to the edge and she nodded, turning to thank him before he showed her the exit. They took hands and held them for a moment, shaking them somewhat before the goddess smiled and turned off the boat. The souls at the bottom had somehow knew better than to rush aboard and stayed on the ground, lingering until she stepped off. Charon stood watching his Queen as long as he could before lifting the hood over his head and grumbling something to a soul that neared him.

Often the silence of the Underworld was comforting but the goddess had quickly learned such comfort was due to the environment. In the palace, silence was created. The servants knew better than to chatter and the lacking company made for quiet nights. But within the marble walls was a sense of control that completely evaporated out in the open Underworld. The only sound she heard as she approached nothingness was the parting rocks underneath her feet. The spread out as she stepped, causing feint sounds of mineral rubbing against mineral. She was tempted to stomp her feet or drag them along to create more noise, _anything_ to distract her from the haunting silence that seemed to weigh her down. The further she walked into the dark and from the shoreline, the more paranoid she became that something was out there. Her eyes started to look left and right more than forward and she would pause in her step, thinking she heard something she didn't and her breath would shorten in fear. She had only seconds to realize perhaps _this_ was why he hadn't told her she could leave.

As time was often not a concern of the gods, Persephone hadn't really thought of how long she had been wandering. It wasn't until the ground underneath her changed from small black rocks to a solid, cold state that she stopped walking and tried to remember. All that she could see was her white robe and her pale skin that seemed to glow in the dark. She put a protective hand on her stomach and another on her chest, trying to ease her breathing and focus on Charon's words: _it opens for you as you wish._

"Then I wish it," she whispered to herself and just as the words escaped her lips, it was like a sonic boom. The words reverberated through the empty space around her and pushed away the weight in all kinds of directions. The Queen's eyes closed tighter as a wind engulfed her, slapping her hair in many directions and taking her dress up and around her body. She started to bow her head to protect herself from the winds when a loud crackling began over her head. She opened her eyes with her head somewhat bowed to see light shining on her feet. She blinked a few times before snapping her head upwards to look at the small hole that had opened up near her. She stood there, watching the ground move itself away from the hole causing it to grow larger. The dirt clumped together and rolled off to the side or downward, creating a bridge from her feet to the world above. In the process of the movement some of the ground would fall and roll around, and the movement revealed roots and other various objects in the ground.

The bridge of Earth had been completed within a few seconds but the goddess refused to move while the dirt still made noise. A little while after that decision had been made, the ground finally stopped moving but the silence did not return: instead, through the hole, Persephone could hear the wind whistling through trees and bushes, and the happy birds singing their songs. Her lips parted in a smile as she stepped into the greater portion of the light and she closed her eyes as the feeling of warmth fell upon her and soothed her entire being. Using the sounds and warmth of the sun to guide her, she kept her eyes closed and walked up the dirt bridge slowly. Her feet could easily tell the difference between the ground of the Underworld and that of above, both in temperature and texture but when her feet touched the soft, lush grass, her bright eyes flew open and she sat down in it. Letting her hands run over the top of the blades, Persephone was reminded of how beautiful the springtime and summer were, thanks to her mother.

Frowning slightly, Persephone was reminded that this time of year she would normally be with her mother. They would travel the Earth, finding lands to make beautiful or creating new flowers in commemoration of her return. Standing to her feet, the daughter of the spring took in a deep breath and made a quiet prayer to Iris.

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Olympus had been strangely quiet as Persephone approached its gates. The fires were still a blazing, much thanks to Hestia, but the roads outside of the palace were empty. She approached the large doors of the council chambers that were also barren and that, in of itself, sent a cold chill down her spine. The Underworld was _supposed_ to be quiet, but Olympus was a center of gossip, rage, love and whatever else her family could bring to the table. It was simply a place of _action_. The emptiness was reminiscent of when her and Hades arrived to find Hephaestus and Hestia alone taking care of the place. Swallowing nervously, she would have given anything to find either of them at this point.

Seeing as Hades did not have a room on Olympus, she opted to find her mother first. The hallways of the palace had become second nature to anyone living there long enough, but they weren't initially intuitive. They would wind around to a dead end, stopping at someone's room with nowhere else to go. Sometimes the hallway would stretch for a while with no doors, just walls, leaving the wanderer wondering if they had stumbled into a trap. Hephaestus had created a few hidden doorways, some most likely only he knew, but he had revealed plenty to the Olympians. Short cuts here and there were added in cases of emergency and had since, of course, been abused by Dionysus, Ares and Aphrodite. Pressing her hand against a specific portion of an empty wall, Persephone activated one of these secret halls that led to her mother's room, something she had used often to avoid certain gods who didn't know when to give up.

The goddess smiled and shook her head as she passed an empty wine bottle and continued down the path, using her hand to rub against the familiar wall. Nearly three quarters of the way to the exit, she paused in her step as she heard voices leaking through the door and into her small hallway. Her eyes narrowed in concern as she tried to place the voices, initially hoping her instincts were wrong. But as she took a few steps closer and heard the pair, she felt her heart sank and knew it was her husband and mother.

"You never should have put it on to begin with!" Hades snapped suddenly.

"And _you_ never should have taken my little girl!" Demeter replied near immediately, willing to join his tone and volume. The line had sounded a little rehearsed, as if she had been holding onto it for centuries, just waiting for the right time to say it. It had caused Hades to groan and he lifted a hand, turning away from her.

"Here we go," he mumbled.

"No, you listen to me!" Demeter yelled as she reached out, grabbing her brother by the arm and pulling him to face her. She let go of him as he turned and she pointed the finger to his face. "You had _no_ right! She deserved the chance to make that decision and have the time to think it over!"

"So what? So she could be like you?" he asked condescendingly. "Never marrying and lay about, fucking whoever comes along?"

Demeter had to bite back the offense she took in that, as it plainly made her sound like Aphrodite but worse (should that be possible). The harvest goddess took great pride in her ability to love without giving up her own self to do so and never took the whispers of her not marrying seriously. Shaking her head, Demeter let out a low sigh that meant he had hit rather harshly.

"At least with me, she would have had the _choice_."

"Choice?" Hades nearly laughed at the word, finding that statement the most ridiculous he had heard from her. "Like she had the choice to stay or leave while you were killing mortals? Like she had the choice when Zeus _forced_ her to come up half of the time to satisfy _you_?"

"I was getting her out of the horrid place you call a home!" Demeter yelled loudly, trying to drown out Hades' logic. "I wanted her back!"

"You treat her like an object!" Hades' voice boomed through the door and though Persephone could not see it, her mother glared at him and refused to back down. "You see our marriage as some personal offense towards _you_ when it has nothing to do with you!"

"MY daughter!" Demeter reminded him, slapping a hand on her chest to emphasize her point. "You stole _my_ daughter and you see NO personal offense in that?"

"No!" Hades replied, still loud and angry, but the exasperation in his voice was quickly becoming apparent. He was not an arguer; in his realm, things were simply done at his first word and on Olympus, he had refused to join in the many squabbles that created problems. It was rare for anyone to see him in a debate or argument and for his part, he made it rare because it was not enjoyable. "She's not a child anymore, Demeter and she wasn't when we married. Everyone marries –"

"I don't," the harvest goddess coldly added, her voice insinuated exactly why she wouldn't without the words needing to be there. "And you know very well that is an option!"

"Not for me!" Hades' voice had boomed to full volume again, which caused Persephone to recoil slightly behind the door at its potency. Demeter, however, was unmoved by a show of force and simply narrowed her eyes. "You have every luxury you could possibly want up here! You could afford plenty and all I asked for was what everyone else here wants: company and love! And you couldn't even give me that! You _had_ to take her for half a year every damn year!"

"You didn't ask!" Demeter shrieked to be heard since her voice had no power equal to his own but her voice wasn't all that stopped him. She had put her hands up and slammed them into his chest, not really moving him much but causing him to stop and look at her, a mild look of shock washing over his features. She glared up at him and pointed a finger to his face. "You just _took_! You pretend you're so much better than your brothers, but you're just as bad! You think you deserve whatever your eyes fall on and **you** couldn't afford me the honorable thing of ASKING my PERMISSION!"

It wasn't the words that caused Persephone to stumble out of the door but rather their voices. As she pressed her hands on the secret door, she realized how much pain she had caused the two she loved the most with their secrets. Hades had learned to play the villain and taken that role with such grace that he had almost come to believe it and her mother had suffered under thinking her own brother had betrayed her so violently. She had also come to realize that the separation between the two had made things bearable for her; Hades stayed under the ground and Demeter above, never giving either the opportunity such as this. Persephone had taken the easy way but it had only been easy for her.

"Stop it," she called out but the fighting had already ceased as the noise of the door had caused the pair to look over at her. Hades was unable to hide his shock, though whether he was surprised she had left the Underworld or heard the argument was indistinguishable. Demeter seemed less shocked, as if she had known her daughter was there but Persephone hadn't caught that subtle glance. She placed a hand on her husband's arm and then looked to her mother, glancing her other hand on her shoulder. "Please stop arguing.. This isn't right."

"Persephone," Hades' voice warned quietly and under his breath but the caution went ignored. His wife's hand slid off of his arm and Persephone turned to face her mother solely, her eyes displaying a heavy amount of sadness and regret.

"Mom," she started quietly, briefly glancing down as Demeter raised an eyebrow. Clenching her jaw together tightly, she took in a deep breath before lifting her gaze and trying to boldly tell her mother the truth. "Hades didn't … steal me or kidnap me. I didn't know how to tell you and I – I didn't think you would approve. So we – _I_ planned it all in hopes that you would let me go."

The moment following felt nearly surreal to the younger goddess. She expected her mother to be the extreme of either anger or sadness. She had thought of telling her mother the truth for years, especially when it all first happened, but all she could think of was the hurt in her mother's face. They had lied and put up a farce to protect Demeter and all it had done was created more anguish and pain, but the truth would have made it worse. Persephone well understood the implications of lying and making her mother look foolish to Olympus, another reason she had never wanted to admit this. But as time had gone on and her mother became bitterer, she had lingered on telling her numerous times. Every time, the yelling, screaming and crying that she imagined felt too painful to bear.

But as Persephone's bright multi-colored eyes stared into her mother's, awaiting a glare or welling tears, she was panicked when nothing happened. Demeter simply stared her down, blankly, collecting her thoughts and words adequately. Slowly, a hand from the harvest goddess reached up and touched her daughter's cheek. Demeter's eyes did change to a sadness, but it wasn't quite what her daughter was expecting. Demeter frowned and sighed, nodding slowly as she rubbed her daughter's cheek.

"Oh, my poor daughter," Demeter started with a heavy sense of pity in her voice. "I know. I've known for such a long time."

Persephone's eyebrows raised slightly in surprise and her eyes started to widen, allowing Demeter to see very clearly the tears that were quickly forming. Perhaps one of the most surprising things her mother could have said, she was stunned and had no words to reply.

"I've gone along with this … _charade_ in hopes that you would take the blame off of Hades and tell me the truth. But it took you so long to care enough about us to do so," she narrated quietly in a very disappointed tone. Demeter was no longer hurting from the act but had grown frustrated over the continuing lies. She shook her head again as she let go of her daughter, who had blinked a few times and caused tears to roll down her cheek. "You should have asked me. But I release you from your obligations. Stay in the Underworld with him."

Demeter looked to the ground as she said that, waving a hand into the air as she turned and walked away from the pair. She felt defeated by the truth and though she released her daughter by the advice of Hera, she felt no better for it. Unwilling to allow her daughter to see her further pain, since she still wished to teach her this lesson, she quickly escaped through the hall to the right and let the tears fall once out of sight.

Persephone was unable to move, even to chase after her mother though her mind screamed at her to do so. She simply stood there as the tears were now free falling down her cheeks and her face was perpetually stunned. Her jaw was slightly opened, as if she was attempting to say something or had been stuck in the middle of defending herself. Her heart was pounding underneath her chest to the point where she felt it would rip out and fall to the ground. Hades started to step forward, glancing between the empty hallway where Demeter fled and his wife and just as he glanced back to her, he noticed her knees buckle beneath her. He let out a noise in surprise and swooped down, grabbing her elbows to keep her supported. He tried to lift her but her legs refused to keep standing. As he leaned forward, he realized she was beginning to sob silently, her eyes closed and the tears running down her red cheeks. The cool tears were the only things breaking up the burning sensation on her face, but the pain of the moment had no relief known to her. She leaned forward as her husband slowly set her on the ground in a seated position and she began to moan, finally able to let out a sound akin to her pain. Hades frowned, kneeling down behind her and wrapped his arms around her. She placed her hands on his strong forearm and leaned against him, using him for support as she sobbed loudly and uncontrollably. Hades closed his eyes, turning his head to the side as he wished there was a way to not hear the pain in her cries. He bowed his head behind hers and sat there in silence, holding her close and unable to think of anything else to help her.


	25. Chapter Twenty Four: Rocky Waters

Hera loved her gardens, as they were a place for her to escape. She had set parameters about the palace many, many years ago and one of the rules she had drilled into her husband, siblings and children was that she was _never_ to be disturbed, argued with or beckoned for when in the garden. Most of them had agreed to the rule begrudgingly, as they did not have the same luxury, and assumed she would abuse it; however, Hera was rarely in the garden for long periods of time. Most often she would retreat into the garden after a fight with Zeus or when discovering yet another child by his infidelity. Even in these moments of high stress, the longest she had been in the gardens had been a day.

Hera was not a flighty goddess, something that's important to note: she did not use the gardens to flee from her problems or avoid those she was annoyed with, nor did she hide there to avoid a conflict or resolution. She always faced the problems before entering and proceeded to use the gardens to clear her thoughts and calm her mood. Though the argument between her and Zeus was not technically resolved, the Queen would have been amiss to not find some solitude in her gardens in the meantime. There, among a small gathering of trees and bushes, the goddess spread her arms out wide and a smile overcome her face so dramatically, anyone looking upon her would have been shocked she could curve her lips that much. Stretching her arms up into the air, she took in a long, deep breath akin to preparing to sing but then released it into a loud, content sigh.

Considering how happy this place had made her, it was no surprise then how different her mood became when she saw Poseidon entering the gardens. The smile had immediately vanished, her eyes became intense and her body stiffened into a much more formal stance. Granted, she had an open invitation to her family: she would never hoard something so beautiful from those she loved, but Hera was no stranger to Poseidon's motives; the god simply didn't roam gardens to feel better or enjoy the view. She raised her arms to her chest and crossed them stubbornly, refusing to move and expecting him to turn and leave once he spotted her.

Which, of course, he did not.

Poseidon grinned as his eyes connected with hers and he opened his mouth, putting his hands in the air to pretend he was surprised to see her. The motions were greeted with a silent glare as Hera was just waiting for him to break the rules of her garden. When he took a step forward and opened his mouth again to speak, Hera lifted a hand up and he paused, his mouth hanging open, waiting for her to rant about how in the wrong he was. She quietly sighed as she pointed behind him, near the main entrance of the gardens and walked passed, mumbling something under her breath in the process. Poseidon had to swallow a chuckle as he turned to follow her, realizing she was pulling him from the center of the gardens in order to speak. She went to such lengths to keep things as she wanted them.

In general, most of the gods had seen Poseidon and Zeus as extremely similar with the small exception of their views of mortals. Zeus had loved the mortals dearly, often causing discord among his family for taking their favor. Poseidon, however, had a very low view of the mortals. Created by the gods, they only served in his view for their amusement and egos. He didn't believe the purpose of being a powerful immortal was to love those less powerful and demanded a lot of those who prayed to him for refuge. His moods were much more violent and sudden than his younger brother, often reflective in the oceans. His rage would ripple through the water and create tides to over turn boats or blow upwards into the sky to create hurricanes. For all his anger and resentment of hubris, he was also known as a pleasant man with a hearty laugh and a love of terrible jokes. When in good spirits, he created beautiful creatures of the sea, all varying in different sizes, shapes and colors.

Hera knew better than to associate Poseidon with her husband. On the surface the two seemed remarkably similar, even in their fits of rage, but Poseidon was more often than not compassionate to his family over mortals. He had never broken a promise or swore an oath under false pretenses, at least none known to Hera, and he had never maliciously harmed a family member or other immortal. He settled his disputes in battles or contests and even though he may rant and throw the waters into fits, he never took his anger out on them directly. That was the qualifying difference in Hera's mind between the two and though Zeus was forced to punish his family as ruler, she had always noticed a hint of enjoyment in his actions.

Regardless of her kind thoughts of the god, she still harbored annoyances with him for his womanizing nature and, often times, inappropriate humor. Most especially now that he had interrupted her peace. Bringing a hand up to her temple, she rubbed it preemptively, awaiting the headache he was bound to give her.

"What?" she moaned impatiently.

"Now, now," the sea god condescendingly chided, pausing between each word as he casually eyed the feint beauty between each bud. "Must it always be about something to see you?"

"No," the goddess replied strictly as she turned around to face him, an eyebrow lifting. "But it always is."

Poseidon let out a low and short laugh, nodding his head as if to say she caught him. He lifted a hand out to pluck a white flower from its home, causing Hera to wince slightly and he turned to her, revealing the flower as if she had never seen it before. The goddess didn't bother to glance to it and merely stared at her brother, waiting for the reason he had come. He shrugged when she didn't seem impressed by his small effort to please her and the fingers seemed to twist the flower. The white petals crumpled downward into his hand and as his fingers enclosed it, a muffled noise leaked from between his fingers. A little nose pushed through the gap between his ring and pinky finger, causing him to open his hand to reveal a small, white seahorse. He smiled at the fragile creature, proud of this specific species and he kneeled down to place it in the pool of the fountain. The corner of Hera's mouth twitched despite her efforts.

"I'm worried about you," he offered as an explanation, taking a step closer to her yet facing towards the fountain in the center. "Your first fight with Zeus since you woke up and he hasn't even cheated on you."

"Oh –" Hera slipped out in a surprised tone, never once thinking this might be a topic between them. Her surprised face was replaced with anger of being simplified to a jealous, bitter wife and she shook her head, trying to shake the image out of her mind. "Is that all I am to you? A wife obsessed with her husband's infidelity?"

"To be fair, you were rather obs –"

"This is _not_ appropriate conversation," Hera snapped over his voice, her eyebrows rising up in a facial hint to stop talking about it. She had never once discussed these matters amongst her family and was not about to start with him.

"_Please_," Poseidon grinned as he faced her, noting such act caused her more annoyance. "You never hide when you're mad at him. All of Olympus knows when the two of you are having problems and you don't think it's appropriate to talk about it?"

"All of Olympus knew because his children were always great heroes," Hera lowly explained through her teeth, clenching her jaw in an attempt to remain calm. "Or gods."

"And now?" Poseidon asked with a lifting of his chin, causing his eyes to strain to look down at the goddess.

"There are many reasons a husband and wife will fight," Hera explained extremely calmly, suddenly having a sense of self-awareness rush over her. Whether or not Poseidon was here to rattle her, she would have none of it. The best and often times worst characteristic of Hera was that she never thought she was wrong, not even when her actions caused great pain, war or death. She was _always_ justified in some manner and being married to a man who believed the same thing, there were bound to be arguments. "And _none_ of them are your business."

Poseidon nodded with a look of defeat on his face, momentarily turning away to face the water, hearing only its noise throughout the garden. Reaching a hand out, the drizzling water from the fountain started to pool in his large hand. As the pair stood silently in the garden, watching the water from the fountain rise up in his cupped hand, Poseidon reflected on the nature of keeping things private. Despite having built a large palace under the seas for privacy, he was _not_ a private god. He let the world know when he was angry or happy and the marital problems he suffered were never a private matter. He and Amphitrite would wreck havoc on the open seas whenever they fought, causing all creatures living in or crossing the waters to know their problems. His loud voice would boom from their room when they argued and she would inevitably tell every creature that passed her how awful of a husband he was later on. For someone who was so open about his life and had little privacy in his own marriage, the idea of maintaining that seemed petty and futile. When the water had come close to overflowing in his hand, he spun his hand around and the water had vanished. Turning to the blonde goddess, he sighed as he took a step closer to her and placed that same hand on her shoulder. She eyed it carefully making sure it wasn't wet before looking up into his eyes that were bursts of various blues.

"These are delicate times, Hera," he quietly started, trying not to be too loud though that was often difficult with his voice. "The prophecy still lingers in all of us and threatens our stability more than the Sleep. The last thing we need is panic and stress because you two are unable to get along."

"Coming from you, that means almost nothing," Hera retorted quickly, often a master at sharp and hurtful replies. Unfortunately, Poseidon was not fazed by it and simply laughed.

"I'm not King Olympus," the sea god noted, that grin creeping across his face once more. Unfortunately, the grin was indicative of an upcoming thought that would send him into a roaring laugh, "And Amphy is no Queen Mother."

Hera winced as the sound of his laugh deafened her and filled the garden. She was blind sided by the sound of his voice that she didn't have the time to get angry over his comments and instead, put a hand on his chest and tried pushing him away. Looking to the side to avoid his laughs slapping her in the face, Hera's face of shock and pain was the first thing Demeter saw when she entered the gardens. Blinking a few times as she looked at the pair, Poseidon laughing loudly and Hera trying to shove him away, the harvest goddess only had a few seconds to wonder how this scene had even come to this point. When Hera finally noticed her sister enter, she sidestepped the sea god and pulled her hands off his chest, causing him to calm down and glance to the newcomer.

Now the relationship between Poseidon and Demeter had been strange and tense since the story of her alleged rape. Both sides were fairly determined that is was not as the other portrayed it and no one was willing to do much about it. It was no secret that Poseidon was not the most sensual lover and he had forced himself on many women before meeting Amphitrite, but they had almost always been mortals. The link between his lack of compassion for mortals and raping them was justified in many gods' minds, but when Demeter claimed he had raped her, it didn't sit well. It was before he had married and he had been pursuing Demeter for a wife. The harvest goddess resisted marriage but was no stranger to love. After quite some time of pursuit, Poseidon was suddenly not interested in taking her for a wife anymore. Demeter claimed rape and he blew up at the idea, sinking a few islands in the process. He claimed she had teased him, taking him to secret places and then rejecting him. Since Zeus refused to intervene and Hera attempted to marry Demeter off to protect her, nothing had been truly solved and their relationship deteriorated. Poseidon had since come to forget the occurrence and Demeter begrudgingly acted like she forgave him, but they still were often awkward and snapped at each other in council meetings.

It was not uncommon, then, that Poseidon glanced to Demeter and smiled, only to receive no polite look in return. Hera's glance to the sea god affirmed that he should leave and he nodded to both of them individually before walking passed Demeter. Her head remained still while her eyes followed him and when she glanced over her shoulder to make sure he was gone, she sighed as she turned back to Hera, placing her hands over her face.

"She finally told the truth," Demeter mumbled through her hands. Hera's mouth pinched together as she tried to fight off any immediate comment that would mostly likely not go over very well. The struggle between Demeter and Persephone had lasted much too long in her mind. She understood the lesson Demeter had been trying to teach, but it seemed much more exhausting than it was worth. Trying to be sympathetic, Hera stepped forward to pull her sister into a hug, sighing as she placed her chin on Demeter's bowed head and looked up into the sky.

"This is for the better," Hera tried to reassure her, though that idea had been difficult to instill in the goddess for years. Demeter shook her head within the hug, causing Hera to roll her eyes upwards, trying desperately to control her patience. Just when she thought she might chastise her sister, the harvest goddess' arms wrapped around Hera's waist and pulled her into a hug. Hera's eyes widened suddenly as her suddenly sobbing sister gripped her tightly.

A sudden rush of guilt washed over the Queen's face and she closed her eyes, letting Demeter press her face into her robes. Hera had never known the strong bond between a mother and child, especially not a daughter. She had taken all of the gods and goddesses of Olympus up as her own children, even those of Zeus' and another woman, and thus had a difficult time giving a specific and endearing attachment to her own. She would on occasion side with her children over someone else's, but more often than not they were in the wrong (such as Ares) and she had no choice. Hebe had come the closest to establishing a permanent relationship between them, until Hera was forced to accept Hercules onto Olympus and thus accepting Hebe's marriage to him. Hera had simply become used to children growing up, marrying and seeing her as a Queen rather than a mother. Her eyes grew heavy and sad as she thought on about how lucky Demeter had been to have had this long with Persephone, even if under strained circumstances. Pulling her sister tightly into her arms, the pair stood in the garden with the wind and Demeter's sobs echoing through the solemn trees that mourned every mother's worst day.

* * *

Poseidon scratched his jaw line as he wandered the halls of Olympus, searching for something to help pass the time. Hades was no where to be seen, Dionysus was most likely still asleep and Hestia was a crafty goddess, hiding from public sight better than any chameleon. One of the more surprising gods to be hidden was Aphrodite, someone who the sea god had come to know as a nosey goddess who enjoyed the company of many. Yawning loudly, he turned down another empty hall and was briefly reminded of how hallow the place had become the last time he visited just as the Sleep was happening. It had been unnerving to see so many of his family unmoving and forced into a perpetual nap. Within the first few months, he recalled being paranoid every time his wife or son would take a nap or go to sleep. After a few years he had settled with the idea of his family being immune, but it didn't make the event less troubling.

Sighing loudly just to make some noise in the hallway, he actually caught the attention of Psyche who had been around the corner. The goddess slipped out from behind the wall, seeing the god's back and cleared her throat quietly, causing him to spin around quickly. His wide eyes softened and he smiled when he looked upon the hazelnut colored hair that cascaded over her shoulders. She smiled back but reluctantly, as she was more worried than happy to see him.

"Do you know what's going on?" she asked quietly and he looked at her inquisitively, wondering exactly what she was missing out on. Often the council was pretty lousy at handing down information to the other gods and unless Hermes was directly ordered to do so, he avoided it. Poseidon smiled briefly at her and nodded, motioning her to follow him down the hallway, which she obliged.

"That's a heavy question," he started off casually, not exactly sure where to start. "What is it you know?"

"Well," Psyche started as she looked up to the ceiling, trying to recall all that she heard and sort through the rumors. It had taken quite awhile for her to wake up and by the time she did, so much had already come to pass. Tapping her finger on her lip, she nervously smiled as she glanced to him and shrugged. "Besides what people are whispering and Zeus yelling down the hall for Ares and Athena, not much."

"Ah – they're defending Artemis," he mentioned quietly, scanning her face for a reaction. When she nodded, frowning slightly at the thought of Artemis needing aid, he placed his large hand on her shoulder and winked. "Don't worry so much, my dear. If it was serious, Hades and I would be down there with them."

Of course, Poseidon wasn't entirely aware of what was happening enough to know that as fact, but it was a decent guess. He enjoyed a good brawl and would gladly step in to help out, but he often created more problems than Zeus was willing to take on – Poseidon's collateral damage for the mortals was always catastrophic. Hades never stepped in to fight unless asked to do so – it simply wasn't his style, which the sea god found unfortunate because he was a skilled and strong fighter. Should the situation be more than Zeus and the others could handle, Hermes would have been sent for them. That's when they would know things were bad.

"Where is Eros?" he asked suddenly, looking about as if the winged god would be lingering about. Psyche sighed, shaking her head, obviously not happy with her husband currently.

"He thinks things are too boring and serious up here," she moped. She took the events with a heavy heart, worried for them and their future while her husband had seemed to jump right back into his normal routine and attitudes. "He's on Earth, 'working'."

"Ah," Poseidon grinned at her tone, recognizing the subtle emphasis on certain words to get her opinion across without actually saying it. Females, in his experience, had such a marvelous way of expressing everything they thought and felt without ever saying a direct word of it. It was both amazing and frustrating at the same time. Just as his mind wandered to his wife and how she could wield words like a hero with a sword, he heard a female clear her throat behind the pair. Both turned to look back behind them, Poseidon's hand still lingering over Psyche's shoulder and they both saw Amphitrite at the same time. The goddess had her arms crossed and she was tapping her foot, staring Poseidon down like he had just stole something from her. Psyche immediately moved away from the sea god, pulling her shoulder out from underneath his hand but he didn't seem to notice: Poseidon smiled, lifting his hands into the air.

"Amphy, I was just thinking about you!" he exclaimed loudly as he took a step towards her and she hummed something, lifting an eyebrow.

"Oh yeah?" she asked in a fake surprise. Not immediately understanding her annoyance, he glanced over his shoulder to look back at Psyche who had disappeared and he suddenly connected the dots. Laughing slightly, he extended his arms for a hug and was greeted with a snort.

"Come on – you missed me," he teased, beckoning her into the hug with his hands and grinning at her. Her nose curled up for a moment, resisting the urge to laugh at his foolish looking face and she shook her head.

"No, of course not," she tried to spit out harshly, but it came out more defensive than anything else. "But something's going on and you're not telling me."

"Oh?" he rhetorically replied, lifting an eyebrow. He was greeted with a glare.

"What's going on? Why haven't you come back?" she demanded with her arms on her waist.

Realizing he was still standing there with his arms spread out wide, Poseidon finally dropped them to his sides as he stepped closer to his wife, still grinning. He was going to get a fond hello from her, one way or another. Her light green eyes peered at him, judging his movements with a questioning look until she realized what he was doing all too late: she let out a cry while trying to turn around to flee, but his arms were too long and fast. He had enclosed her in a tight hug and he leaned forward towards her, pursing his lips out for a kiss. She sneered playfully as she eyeballed his wet lips and continually leaned away, groaning loudly. She protested until his lips landed on her cheek and they turned into an 'aww', accepting defeat and sighing. Poseidon started to laugh with his lips still touching her cheek and when he pulled away only a few inches to laugh, she let out a groan and tried to lift a hand to her ear. When he didn't let go over her and she couldn't soften the blow of his laugh, she kicked him in the chin. Poseidon let out a small grunt, immediately letting her go to peer down at his leg and she put a hand up to her ear, closing one eye while looking at him.

"You're so _loud_," she explained exasperated. Even after many centuries of living with him, she could never get used to that powerful voice of his.

"Didn't have to kick me," he mumbled under his breath, which sounded a lot like a child pouting. Amphitrite finally softened her annoyed face to grin at him, glad to have obtained the upper hand in the situation. Having forgotten the reason she had angry with him, she sent a smug look to Poseidon, which sent him into a small frenzy of thinking how to get her mad again (a sport that was relatively easy, but always fun nonetheless) and he suddenly shrugged casually. "I guess you don't need to know what's happening."

"Oh -!" she said with a surprise, her eyes widening and her grin completely vanishing. She had gained and lost control within the blink of an eye and she pointed a finger at him, stepping forward to poke him in the chest. "This isn't the time to be joking about things like that! Tell me what exactly is going on!"

Poseidon only grinned in response to the poking, still playfully enjoying her antics a and upon demanding for information, he simply shrugged, knowing full well she _hated_ to be left out. Amphitrite's eyes grew twice their size but this time not out of surprise – out of fury. She put her hands up next to her head, her fingers sprawled out as if she were going to tear the hair out of her head right then and there. Instead, she clasped her hands shut into fists and let out a frustrated half-scream, where she was loud enough to show her irritation but not loud enough to be serious. This was the moment were Poseidon began to enjoy their arguments the most, which would proceed to provoke her rage even more. He wasn't sure exactly what it was about her that was so endearing – perhaps the mannerisms she carried when angry or simply the fact that she would be so frustrated so quickly – but he lived for these moments. His lips curled slowly upwards as he watched her attempt to contain the boiling anger, which was pushed overboard by the smile.

"WHAT?" she asked loudly, her eyebrows high on their forehead.

"I love you," Poseidon calmly and softly stated, smiling at her as he stepped closer. All at once, the steam in her was scattered and her face calmed down, though the look of surprise was still laced all over her. Traditionally, they fought; they would argue, raise hell in the waters, argue some more and potentially destroy a boat or city. Only after a few days apart did they forget or forgive each other and return to their daily lives, until another argument a few days (or hours) later. Only a few times in their history did they ever forgive each other quickly and even then, it was begrudgingly or demanded of them.

Her hands were still in the air, as if she was ready to pounce, but they slowly started to fall as she blinked, staring into his blue eyes as if searching for a hint of a cruel joke. When no laugh followed, Amphitrite's lips curled into a small smile and she put her arms out, attempting to wrap around her husband though she didn't quite make it all the way around his large torso. She laid her head against his chest and closed her eyes, hugging him tightly. He bowed his head down to kiss her forehead while his arms enwrapped her tightly. They held each other just long enough for time to pass and the world around them to spring to life again.

It was Zeus' voice that carried through the hallway and while Amphitrite pulled away first, Poseidon stood still trying to make the words out. He didn't sound panicked, a good first sign, but authoritative and demanding. He heard the names his brother called out for and he groaned. Amphitrite's nose curled up, offended at the constant isolation of the council from the rest of Olympus. Giving off an apologizing shrug, Poseidon turned from his wife and headed down towards the council chambers, where he and the original six children of Cronus were to discuss the current situation privately.


	26. Chapter Twenty Five: Family Ties

It wasn't often the original six Olympians held a meeting without the rest, especially considering Hestia had stepped down. She was still present at every council in the center but she didn't voice her opinion - though she never really had before either. Zeus had insisted on her presence and though she saw no need to be there, she did not argue him and quietly followed the rest into his room. Hera and Demeter entered together, neither of them looking at him as they did so. He cleared his throat as they passed, not in the mood to deal with their antics. Poseidon followed in next, pointing out some blood on Zeus' arm as he passed by, followed by a quiet Hades and shy Hestia. The thunder god closed the door behind his eldest sister and turned to face them, sighing quietly. Demeter was the first to show concern over the blood on him and stepped forward, eyeing him with a worried look. Hera merely raised an eyebrow at the evidence of violence, unmoved by it as Zeus' presence meant it had been handled adequately.

"What happened?" she asked as her hand came up to her mouth, a finger resting on her lips to avoid asking further questions. Demeter was not a fighter by nature and only jumped in at Zeus' request, much like Poseidon and Hades, but the thought suddenly crossed her mind to start training again when looking upon her brother and King. Hades' mouth twisted to the side, not as concerned since his brother was not severely harmed nor did the blood look like his - but the fact that he had to join in a fight at all was disconcerting. The same thought seemed to cross everyone else's mind at the same time and the silence that settled on them was the epiphany of their worst fears: they were in a war.

"Nyx's children," Zeus sniffed as his nose crunched up, the mere name of the goddess causing him anger. Any challenge to his authority was a serious offense, something he had been paranoid over and fought his entire life. He had been the cause of his father's downfall who was betrayed by his wife, something the gods had seen before with Uranus and Gaia. Over the years, all of these older gods had quieted down and settled into a peaceful lifestyle under Zeus' rule. The idea that any of them were the cause of their sleeping and now this battle was a bad sign and an immediate threat to his throne. Hestia stared at the ground, not wanting to join in on the conversation but her eyes widened, knowing exactly what he had called her in. Zeus' blue eyes turned to her and though she refused to look up, she knew he was looking at her. "They created the Sleep with her and Gaia's aid. They put our mother to sleep in a remote cave where Artemis found her. They attacked her and consequently us. We need to know everything about them... Hestia."

She closed her eyes as the pressure of her name and their eyes falling on her. Hades turned to her, frowning at her shyness and he sighed, reaching a hand up to scratch the back of his neck. His years underneath Olympus and the Earth had left him much time to research and read. He had come to know the world before his birth very well and feeling sorry for his awkward sister, he cleared his throat and began speaking for her.

"Not all of them went into isolation after the war with the titans," he started, staring at the ground to try and recall all of their names. "Nemesis is probably one of the more active ones. She shouldn't be a problem, though -"

"She is," Zeus grumbled, crossing his arms over his chest. Hades paused, his face showing the shock on his face that she would take a side. Hera raised a hand to her face, covering half of it as she closed her eyes and tried to soak this in as quickly and calmly as possible. Poseidon leaned against the desk, crossing his arms and listened without too many facial expressions. He saw no need to panic just yet.

"Hmm," Hades hummed at first, trying to think of a reason for Nemesis' choice but after a few minutes of silence, Demeter coughed and withdrew him from his thoughts. Looking up, he gave a small apologetic smile before continuing. "Many of them manifest themselves in mortals without showing. They have no interest in us… or at least _didn't_."

"Thanatos," Hestia whispered to her side towards her brother, shifting uncomfortably as she did so and Hades nodded to affirm her concern.

"Thanatos is the one to worry about. He's the god of death, twin of Hypnos ..." Hades paused in his sentence, his eyes widening as he realized who directly what was responsible. "Hypnos."

Zeus nodded at the epiphany, eyeing the rest of his siblings. "Yeah."

"Wait a minute," Poseidon spoke up, putting a hand out to signal them to stop talking, a thought suddenly overcoming him. "They did this to Rhea too?"

Zeus squinted at his brother, wondering exactly how he had missed that earlier and nodded. "She was the chief contact between Nyx and Gaia. Moros must have told her Gaia would turn on their agreement, so she severed their communication. Rhea's off speaking with Gaia now and after she talks to Nyx, she's coming here."

Hera scratched at her hairline while staring at the ground and she took in a deep breath, then released it into a long sigh. When she looked up again, all eyes (except Hestia's) were on her and she shrugged, shaking her head. "This doesn't mean war. We still have time to discuss things with the nebïaids -"

"And say what?" Zeus snapped, glaring at his wife as he clearly disagreed with her on this. "That we're sorry for defending Artemis and waking our mother?"

"This is Nyx and Gaia's problem, not ours!" she snapped back, pushing off the wall she was leaning on into a standing and stronger position. She was still on edge from their argument earlier and any disagreement between them brought back her personal grievances with him. "We woke Rhea up and now let them deal with their problems!"

"Unfortunately -" Poseidon interrupted, glancing between the two that seemed to be fighting about more than the current situation. "Their 'problems' are about us. We can't just let them decide this again without our input."

"I'm not saying we do nothing," Hera sighed, closing her eyes to try and collect her thoughts again and clear her anger with Zeus out - for the moment. "But running into battle isn't always an option. We need to take a diplomatic stance for as long as we can."

"Diplomatic?" Demeter questioned, looking at her sister with shock as she pointed to Zeus' arm. "They attacked first!"

"Well," Poseidon smirked. "It _was_ Artemis. We don't know that for sure."

"Regardless," Hades interrupted before any joke could be made or offense taken. "We can't take back what happened but we can readjust how we handle things from here on out. The last thing we want and need is a war with Nyx."

His words had an effect on the rest of them, causing a silence to settle in the room. Zeus was not happy with it but didn't immediately disagree; his lips twisted as he thought of something to say against it, but all he could do was get mad that they had the arrogance to attack one of them and then not leave when he showed up. Hera nodded in silence, at least glad someone had agreed with her on principle if not entirely. Her main concern was sacrificing her family to a war again, not prepared to lose everything again and more permanently. Demeter was surprisingly more eager to fight, siding with Zeus on taking offense. Not only did they put them to sleep, like troublesome little children, but attacked them when they attempted to discover the source of it all. The harvest goddess crossed her arms and stared at the ground, glaring at a mental image of their faces. Poseidon shrugged off Hades' words, certainly agreeing with them but had no further suggestion for where to go from here. Hestia shifted in the silence and, surprisingly, lifted her gaze to Zeus, eyeing the bloodstains and resisted the temptation to run for water to clean him up.

As the oldest of the six, Hestia had come to learn a lot on her own. Before any of her siblings had been born, she had to fend for herself in many ways. She was swallowed first by their father, a horrific event that she thankfully did not remember. As an immortal, being swallowed was not a death sentence but it was possibly one of the worst fates that could befall them. Hestia's first memory was of the blackness of her father's stomach and hearing him screaming at her mother. They were arguing about his paranoia and eating their children, which she protested fiercely, calling him irrational and heartless. Hestia learned early of her father's lack of compassion and the love her mother had for them by listening quietly. Every night after her father had fallen asleep, her mother would lay her head on Cronus' stomach and talk to Hestia, telling her everything was going to be fine. Hestia began to learn a lot through these stolen moments in the night between her and her mother. Despite being subjected daily to whatever he consumed for the day and hearing the deafening demands that filled her strange excuse for a room, she began to find joy in her life when night fell and her mother's soft voice spoke to her.

The time she spent alone was the main reason she had turned out so quiet and shy; she would never understand the strength she had to endure her horrific early years. Her nurturing nature was kicked in when Hades joined her in the depths of their father's stomach and she began to take care of him, telling him of their mother, her kindness and that she would get them out of there one day. She would hold him at night when their father went to sleep and their mother began telling stories again, describing the outside world and how beautiful it was going to be when they came out.

As their father continued devouring his own children whole, they grew inside just the same and his stomach began to grow. Hestia had learned how to create fire through her mother's advice and sneaky nature - she had snuck kindle into Cronus' meals. Their father would often complain of being too hot and he was almost always answered by Rhea who told him he was paranoid. eHeBy the time Hera was swallowed, the world inside of Cronus was as comfortable as possible. Fires lit the world around them, showing what materials they had and the disgusting nature of the inside of his stomach. Demeter, Poseidon and Hera grew up under the wing of Hestia and Hades, the quiet pseudo parents that told them stories and created meals out of previously eaten food. It was understandable to the rest that the oldest pair was still quiet and withdrawn, even when introduced to a vibrant and beautiful world. But what the rest also came to realize was the pure knowledge Hestia had absorbed in her years alone; she had nothing else around her but the sound of their father's voice until her siblings arrived, and so she heard names, decrees, fights and more. She knew who Nyx was before she ever stepped out of her father and she knew exactly what her children could do. She was, in essence, one of the most powerful Olympians in her strength and knowledge but without the drive to do anything about it.

"Nyx controls the night," Hestia quietly started, her shoulder hunching over and her eyes averting as they started to look at her. "She travels in darkness and can be anywhere it is. She rarely intervenes because she prefers to watch. She is very powerful... even father feared her."

The unfortunate words were exactly what Zeus had been looking for when he asked her here and he sighed quietly, nodding his head as he turned away from his sister. For the rest, it sounded hauntingly like she had been telling them a story to keep them occupied, the way the words had fallen out. Hades looked down at her, frowning slightly as the memories came crawling back to him. Hera's shoulders shifted as an uncomfortable shiver trickled down her spine. Zeus looked up to the endless ceiling, asking himself what he had gotten into before turning back to Hestia.

"Can she heal them?" he asked somewhat rhetorically, just wanting to hear the answer to affirm what he saw. The eldest sister pinched her lips together and nodded her head.

"Let us hope then," Hera said suddenly, glancing from Hestia to Zeus. "That mother is a better diplomat than you are."


	27. Chapter Twenty Six: Racket

Apollo's room was normally neat and, for the most part, organized. He had a library of music against one wall where he also displayed his many musical instruments. But since waking up, he had realized how much change in music he had missed over two thousand years. Now, in that corner, there was a collection of instruments piled on top of each other. At the bass was a bright red drum set with a collection of guitars, sitars and other string instruments leaning against it. On top of a snare was an electric keyboard and to the left of this mess (with many small instruments decorating the floor) was a giant organ. Barely any of these were touched yet as he still in the process of obtaining them before learning to master any of them. Piled vertically to the right of this disaster were books upon books on the history of music, sheet music and books of sheet music to satisfy him for years. Unfortunately, his interests were not solely in music.

Mortals had also come a long way in term of medicine, beyond the point Apollo ever could have imagined. He had posters laid about everywhere on the floor of the human body from different centuries. The books were piling up the more research he did on modern medicine, let alone what had happened before the twentieth century. Medical instruments were tossed around the area such as stethoscopes, forceps, retractors, defibrillators, and many other external and internal medical tools. He had been looking into x-rays, fascinated by this technology until he had caught a glimpse of a painting in a particular doctor's office and it set him into a frenzy of looking at the history of art - which, by far, was one of the most frustrating and yet interesting topics he had discovered.

So he sat in his mess of a room, hunched over his desk without a shirt on and white cotton pants as he played a collection of music he had found striking (currently rap and hip-hop) while he was searching through a rather large book with prints of paintings. He was rubbing his temple while staring at a painting of himself and his sister, attacking Niobe's children. In every version, depicted by several artists, he and Artemis were not the focus of the painting but rather the anguish of Niobe who had brought their wrath upon her children. He squinted at the details of the painting, not surprised the mortals would sympathize with the woman but offended he and Artemis were not larger focal points. As he ran his fingers through his hair, the door to his room swung upon to reveal Hermes in a pair of loose blue jeans and a button down shirt. In his hand was an apple that he took a bite out of and his nose scrunched up in distaste, but it wasn't the taste of the apple but rather the music Apollo was listening to.

"What is that?" he asked loudly over the deep bass, leaning against the frame of the door as his eyes scanned the disaster of the room. Apollo looked over his shoulder, raising an eyebrow with a small smirk to his friend.

"Depends on what you're talking about," Apollo replied calmly, following Hermes' eyes to the mess around his room.

"That racket," Hermes specified with a grin.

"Oh -" Apollo started as he turned to the player on his desk, which was consequently not plugged into anything. Hephaestus had modified it for him earlier so he could play music at his desk without mortal restrictions. Pointing to the player, he turned to his friend in the doorway again. "That, my uncultured friend, is called rap. It's a new form of music that -"

"Sounds like crap," Hermes finished for him, snickering when Apollo's face turned briefly into annoyance. He tossed the half eaten apple to the sun god who caught it and took a bite while half-glaring at Hermes. The pair had been friends very early on despite some of their clear-cut differences - such as Hermes' ability to lie without flinching and Apollo's concern for truth and harmony. But their love of women had brought them together at first, as they would waste long hours of the day recalling who they had and who won in their conquests. Overtime they found more commonalities despite their personalities not always matching. Apollo learned to laugh off much of Hermes' jokes rather than take him too seriously and the messenger god had learned never to lie to the sun god, as he always knew and was never happy about it. So it was this moment where Apollo simply shook his head at Hermes' comment, turning back to the book and eyeing the painted victims around Niobe.

"Still in the meeting?" Apollo asked while staring down at the book, referencing the original six.

"Yeah," Hermes mumbled while peering into the pile of instruments, spotting the lyre at the bottom. He sniffed, crunching his nose up briefly before moving onto the next large pile in the room. "Can't hear through the door either. Hey, what's this?"

Resisting the urge to scold his friend for attempting to listen in on a private meeting, Apollo let himself be distracted by Hermes' question and glanced over to see him holding up a speculum, a plastic instrument used for gynecological exams. Apollo tried to stifle his laugh, which turned into a snicker as he turned back to the book without answering. Hermes blinked over at the blonde god before messing around with the handles and then shrugged, tossing it back into the pile of medical equipment. He lingered over the piles in the room for a second, his eyes jumping between the mess and the cause of the mess, wondering exactly what was _so_ much more important than talking to him. Instead of letting this go on, Hermes sauntered over to his older brother and placed his elbow on Apollo's shoulder, blatantly looking over his shoulder.

"What're you studying?" he asked loudly, intending to pull him away from his train of thought – which was unsuccessful. Sighing patiently, like a father or older brother trying to ignore a child, he turned the page to the next set of paintings.

"Art," he replied dryly. Since stirring from his thousand year nap, all Apollo had truly desired to do was catch up with the mortals; however, between the constant meetings and crises, he had little time to do as such and had to steal quiet moments when they arose. But when Hermes leaned forward to squint at the splendid painting of Zeus and Semele, the sun god had to retire his research for the time being and enjoy the company of his restless friend. Grinning at the messenger god, the blonde god pulled his shoulder out from under Hermes, causing him to fall forward towards the book. His face slammed into the book first before his hand could grasp the desk and as Apollo leaned the chair backwards laughing, Hermes smirked into the pages. His foot was still planted close to Apollo's chair, which was on two legs now, and the mischievous god wrapped his ankle around the closest leg of the chair and pulled as he jumped to the left. Apollo's laughing was abruptly stopped as the chair leaned towards the left and tumbled to the ground, his groan overshadowed by the laugh of Hermes' that echoed through the room and drew Dionysus, who had been wandering in the hallway, into the room.

"What are you –" the hung over god grumbled at first as he stepped in, but interrupted himself as he started laughing too. The three were all, despite their natures, good friends and eternal contestants in whatever game they could come up with. Early on, it was immortal women: how many goddesses could one god have. That, however, quickly bored them and they moved onto mortal women, a contest Dionysus easily lost as he forgot many of his nights. Though that contest has never actually extinguished, they have created many in smaller ones in the meantime. Hermes' personal favorites were the pranks; the one he recalls the most often was when he hit a horse of Apollo's chariot with a spike and they flew off in shock, causing Apollo to fall off the back; needless to say, that was not the sun god's favorite story of Hermes'. Apollo grumbled something into the ground as he sat up, wiping off his bare chest as his light eyes caught sight of the wine god. Raising an eyebrow, he suddenly realized how little they had seen of him lately, which was an odd fact as whenever Hera grounded him to Olympus, he whined and complained.

"Where have _you_ been?" Apollo asked with a grin in his tone and on his lips. Hermes glanced over at the wine god, a much larger grin forming on his face as he leaned against the desk with a raised eyebrow.

"Ugh, turn that shit off," Dionysus groaned as he put a hand to his head and closed his eyes.

Apollo rolled his eyes, biting back any comments to explain the history or value of rap music as he pushed himself off the ground and instead reached his hand out to the unit and turned the volume up. Hermes' laugh was heard immediately but Dionysus' groan was muted by the bass. As the wine god stumbled towards the music to shut it off, both of the gods cut him off and instead he tumbled onto the bed face first. Apollo's grin widened as he enjoyed a few more seconds of the god's pain before turning it down slightly.

"Thank you," he mumbled into the blankets sarcastically.

"So you went off to a party and didn't invite us?" Hermes asked as he placed a hand on his chest, trying to sound hurt but his coy smirk gave away his joking.

"I was busy," Dionysus said into the blankets again.

"Oh yeah," Hermes replied with a sudden change in tone, an elbow reaching out to poke Apollo. The blonde god blinked, turning his attention to Hermes with a questioning look, not exactly following his line of thoughts. "Showing the daughter how to party, eh?"

"_Daughter_?" Apollo asked immediately, a grin forming over his lips and in his voice as he looked over to Dionysus, who was rolling onto his back. The wine god clearly glared at Hermes for a second but before he could say anything, the messenger god leaned forward and whispered into Apollo's ear. Dionysus flew up into a sitting position as a great laugh burst from the sun god and he slapped a hand on Dionysus' shoulder. "Aphrodite's daughter? No wonder you've kept her hidden!"

Groaning from the slap on his shoulder, he only slightly have a grin as he was battling his stomach from sitting up too fast. Trying to gather his bearings, Apollo turned to Hermes who seemed to know a lot about this new daughter of theirs.

"So, uh, you _know_ her, eh?" Apollo asked.

"Of course," Hermes retorted with a grin, his eyebrows raising on his forehead a few times.

"Her name –" Dionysus suddenly groaned out while scratching the top of his head. "is Khloé."

"Who?" Ares' voice boomed out suddenly from the doorway and before all of them could turn to look, Aphrodite had already squeezed passed him into the door and waved a hand in the air.

"My daughter," she casually tossed off as she rushed in, giggling as she looked upon Apollo and his shirtless chest. The blonde grinned but as he reached his hands out to welcome her into his arms, he paused when he heard a very audible growl. The goddess looked up to the ceiling innocently before turning to sit next to Dionysus, which apparently didn't satisfy Ares any more. Fortunately for the rising tension from the pair, Hermes turned to Ares and his grin, clearly his mind still on the oral topic, gave the war god his own smirk.

"Oh yeah?" his interested grew in the daughter as he walked in closer and he ignored the glare from Aphrodite. "Is she hot?"

"Of course she is," Aphrodite grumbled under her breath, fixing a few stray hairs of Dionysus' as he cupped a hand over his mouth. She snapped something under her breath to him about being an idiot while he glared at her and pretended to vomit in her lap, causing her to jump to her feet.

"Oh _definitely_," Hermes bragged, lifting his arms up behind his head as he motioned to hint she gave him a blowjob. Apollo laughed while Ares grinned and Aphrodite reached over the laughing god to slap Hermes in his privates. Thankfully, the god had the wit and speed to slide off the desk, cupping his genitalia while his wide eyes stared at Aphrodite.

"That's my daughter you're talking about," she sniffed, shrugging her shoulders as if that somehow explained it. Hermes leaned forward, placing his elbow on the desk and grinned at her, finding the quick tongue to reply easily, "Would you rather I speak of you like that?"

"Of course," Aphrodite winked to him in reply, crushing his attempt to catch her. The goddess was no stranger to jealously, even when the topic revolved around her daughter, as the topic was strictly not about _her_. When in the presence of men who blatantly refused to speak of her like that, the green flames boiled up in her until all words were kindly back on her. Though she certainly had matured over her years roaming the Earth, some things had simply not changed at all.

When Aphrodite caught a glimpse of Ares' face, seeing he was still pondering whether or not to have her daughter, she let her nose crinkle up before placing her warm bottom in Apollo's lap. Wrapping her arm around his neck and leaning forward to look at the display on his desk, she traced her toes up and down his calf. Despite knowing she was using him to get back at Ares, Apollo grinned as his fingertips slightly played on her hips before wrapping around her to hold her place in his lap. Dionysus snickered as he also began to realize what was going on and it was that noise that brought Ares back into focus and his red eyes on the scene in front of him.

"What're you looking at?" she asked innocently, scanning the pages on the desk while a finger idly played with a blonde loose curl on the back of Apollo's neck.

"Art that I've missed over the centuries," he replied calmly, ignoring the noises that were coming from Ares' throat. "I see a lot of _inspiration_ throughout these."

Aphrodite tilted her head back, grinning slightly before shrugging her shoulders innocently and readjusting her position in his lap. "I have _no_ idea what you're talking about."

"No?" Ares suddenly interjected as he put his arm between the sitting couple, his eyes staring down at the book with a glare, though everyone knew in the room who he was glaring at. Hermes burst into a laugh, which caused Dionysus to grin and Aphrodite's face flashed with a triumphant look. Apollo leaned back a little, trying not to be so close to the war god's face as he curled his nose up as he had a whiff of the god's scent. A few extra inches further from the god didn't help and Apollo put a hand on his face, pushing him up and away.

"Ugh, go bathe," he offered as an explanation, which caused Ares' red eyes to widen in a sudden rage. Aphrodite quickly jumped to her feet and while it looked like she might try to stop the fight, she actually moved aside to get out of the way. The sun god raised an eyebrow as Ares' lifted his arm to strike and just as Apollo started to rise to his feet to defend, the striking arm was held back. Spinning around to counter strike whoever would dare stop him, he was forced to pause at seeing Athena and Artemis together, neither of which looked happy to see him. His eyes wandered over Artemis' arm that was falling down to her side, noting it was her who stopped him and he grunted.

"They're ready for us," Athena announced flatly, letting her eyes scan the group quickly before turning around and walking out of the room. Artemis stepped forward towards Ares, glaring at him a bit more before turning her back on him as well and walking out. It wasn't until a warm, soft hand touched Ares' forearm that he relinquished his glare on the leaving pair and glanced down to Aphrodite. She leaned her head on him briefly before stepping forward and following their lead out into the hallway. The lingering three awkwardly sat there, eyeing Ares as they waited for him to explode and try to destroy Apollo. The sun god glanced to Hermes who shrugged and just as they started to shift to move, the war god stormed out silently. Dionysus snickered as he stood up, nudging Apollo with his elbow.

"Good one," he laughed.

"What?" Apollo blinked at the laughing duo as they left his room and he started to follow them out of his room. "It was the truth! He smells!"


	28. Chapter Twenty Seven: No Middle Ground

As the Olympians started filing into the council chambers, the sour mood that Zeus was radiating seemed to infect each one instantaneously. Smiles disappeared, shoulders slumped and sighs were audible. Even the giggling Aphrodite had caught onto the somber feeling as she stepped through the large doorway and she eyed the crowd, clearly out of the loop. Hephaestus' mood had already matched the situation, so it was no change for him as he walked in, and although he was without much information as well, he didn't seem to care. Glancing briefly to his wife, who tossed him a wink, the pair divided to the opposite sides of the circle and took their seats respectively. Athena eyed the area carefully, looking for their guest of honor who was nowhere to be seen.

Hera took in a deep breath as she watched everyone take their seats, attempting to ignore the mood Zeus was setting for everyone. The King was sitting in the throne deep in front, his eyebrows frozen in a sour look as he stared into the fire and thought on all the events that had taken place in such a short time. He let his thoughts wander over the years he had wasted, crumbled at Hera's side while those responsible for it went on living. He thought about how crippled Olympus had become and despite that, it was never attacked. He tried to rationalize who hadn't fallen to the sleep and why - why had they been chosen over others? His frown seemed to solidify on his face as he finally thought on the attack and he briefly doubted himself. Hera's words about diplomacy had struck him hard, as he quickly had come to realize what he thought was an offensive attack had primarily been defensive; they were protecting their investment. It was an insult nonetheless, not worthy of attacking his daughter, but in realizing this he had hoped things went well between Nyx and Rhea. When Hera's hand touched his forearm, he was pulled from his thoughts and he had come to realize everyone was staring at him. Hestia offered a small smile and when he nodded to her, she opened the doors for their mother.

Rhea was a brunette with long hair that was bundled up neatly in the back. She wore plain cotton robes as she found them comfortable with a scarf of sorts that wrapped around her neck and tumbled down the front of her robes to her feet. She was dressed very simply and plain, just as she liked it. As a titan, Rhea was naturally tall. She hovered several feet above the other gods, a threatening height if her children didn't know her so well for Rhea was an extremely loving and compassionate person with a calm demeanor. Though Hestia had come to know her wrath from early on, no one else had ever heard her yell or seen her be angry before. Often whenever she disapproved of her children's actions, she would frown and state how disappointed she was, which they considered worse. She always spoke with authority but a soft tone, a combination that both demanded you listen but without threatening your own autonomy. In her presence, the council felt younger, childish; they felt like children with their mother coming to check in on them. Poseidon curled his nose up as he recognized the feeling and disapproved, not one to answer to anyone. Hestia found it comforting and smiled up at her mother, who leaned forward and placed a kiss on her eldest daughter's forehead. As her smile widened, the hearth goddess moved around her mother and went to the doors, closing them behind her.

Rhea looked around the circle of gods, smiling at all of them though only a few smiled back. As she stepped forward towards the fire, preparing to sit on the ground, Hades realized they hadn't prepared a place for her and stood up immediately. Demeter pinched her lips together, momentarily feeling bad but quickly shot a glare to Poseidon who, in her opinion, should have done the same. The sea god shrugged slightly as Rhea thanked her eldest son and sat in his chair and Hades stood behind her. Zeus raised an eyebrow, at the scene before turning to Hestia as she closed and sealed the doors. He announced the meeting to session and looked directly to Rhea, whose smile suddenly waned.

"So," Aphrodite began awkwardly as she shifted in her seat, causing the tension to pull from the titan to herself. She smiled briefly, glancing between Zeus and a few others. "For those of us in the dark, what happened down there?" There was a bite in the words that meant she was offended not to know the current situation and while everyone absorbed it, almost no one reacted to it. Zeus took in a deep breath and nodded, sitting back in his chair as he clenched a fist. He was nearly about to describe the situation when he looked to Rhea once more and raised his eyebrows.

"I believe you would be able to tell them more accurately."

She pinched her lips together, a sadness overcoming her eyes at her son's annoyance with her. She nodded, taking the cue and looking briefly to Aphrodite before scanning the rest. Clearly she was attempting to find a place to begin.

"Around the times of the Roman Empire, I was a frequent visitor of my mother, Gaia. She would complain to me about how the mortals were used and abused by Olympus, unable to work out their own fates. They were punished for mediocre events, turned into plants or animals to be saved from rape or death and given horrible fates when granted a gift. You were cruel to them, like a child is with its toys and she pitied them. One of these times that I visited her, she told me her sister had come to her - Nyx - saying she had overheard out conversation. She agreed with Gaia and believed something needed to be done to quiet the interference. At first, they simply talked about intervening or threatening. But the longer their discussions went on, the more they became to believe the mortals would be better off without Olympus, without a sense of forced order and meticulous rules -"

"And you?" Ares interrupted, leaning forward as he clearly felt something suspicious in her words. He ignored the consequential glares. "Did you agree with them?"

"I did," Rhea admitted immediately, her eyes locking with Ares; there was a clear sadness in her tone, as she regretted doing so and thus began to amend her narrative. "You have to understand, after the wars with the giants -"

"Which _she_ started!" Zeus suddenly roared with the intensity much greater than needed. Even Hera's eyes grew wide as she leaned away from her husband, staring at him incredulously. He was leaning forward with a clenched fist on the arm of the throne which had fallen down, slamming against it. He had been holding in his comments over Gaia for some time, but it was obvious he had been waiting for the right moment to bring it up - which this clearly was not, but he could not hold it in any longer.

"You misunderstood her intensions," Rhea calmly explained.

"Oh, I misunderstood _war_?" Zeus snapped back, causing Ares to grin.

"She needed to know the cycle was over," the Titan replied, again, with calmness. Before Zeus could interrupt her again, she put a hand up and delivered a soft glare in his direction. Though most anyone else would have been yelled at further, he kept his mouth shut and let her continue. "It was a curse of the reigning parents. She was forced to ask her son for help against her husband and it continued down to me. When you defeated your father, Gaia feared the cycle would never end. She needed to keep you from making a similar mistake with your children as well, to test your resolve and ability to lead. You won, and she never bothered you again."

"Barely," Demeter mumbled under her breath, causing the dark brown eyes of her mother to turn to her and she sat up a little straighter. "We _barely_ won. That war almost destroyed us."

"But you won," Rhea replied with a smile. "As parents yourselves, I would think this concept would be not be so foreign anymore."

The comment caused unrest as the almost everyone shifted in their seats uncomfortably, knowing she was right but still unhappy with the idea. She nodded as the silence was her answer and continued on.

"As I was saying, after the war with the giants, Gaia withdrew herself from our world and simply let herself exist with the mortals. Most of us did. I chose to live amongst them and Nyx, as always, watched. We became really close with mortals and it was often difficult to see them used as they were. But in any sense, it became clear that we needed to remove all interference."

"How?" Hera added somewhat quieter than usual, but no one seemed to notice. "How did Hypnos have the power?"

Rhea suddenly frowned and for the first time, her eyes wandered off of anyone's face and to the ground. It was a question she hadn't wanted to answer but knew the question would inevitably come up. She leaned back into Hades' chair momentarily, her eyes staring at the fire as she thought about how to word it.

"As descendants of Gaia and myself, we have certain - liberties, I guess. It takes a lot of effort on our parts, but we were able to weaken you enough to be able to fall under his influence."

This time, Zeus glared at her; she could feel his blue eyes tearing into her and judging her every word, and while Rhea believed his anger was justified, she did not appreciate the looks. She shifted her shoulder slightly and lifted her jaw, trying to feel more comfortable despite her son's cold looks. Unfortunately for her, he wasn't the only one displeased with this new information. Poseidon was one of the few not offended by this news and, in fact, he grinned, suddenly enjoying everyone's displeasure. Hear bowed her head as a hand shielded her face from being seen, Demeter's nose twitched in annoyance, and Athena's frown was clearly visible from all angles of the room; though she had much to say, she preferred to hear the entire story before questioning her.

"So what changed?" Hephaestus asked, cutting the tension swiftly. His rough voice was rarely heard throughout council meetings and though it wasn't clear why he didn't speak up, the rest had simply grown accustomed to it. To hear him speak now diverted their attention from their rage to his general direction. He paused awkwardly, not realizing his question was too vague until Hera cleared her throat slightly, her usual indication of needing more. His eyebrows rose up slightly as he shifted uncomfortably in his chair. "Why the change of heart?"

"Well, Gaia believes the mortals have turned on her," Rhea replied quietly. "She claims they began to worship themselves and their crafts. The more they discover innovation, the more of the Earth they use in abundance. Though at first it seemed like change she was uncomfortable with, it became clearer that this path was damaging to their system and her health."

A glance between Demeter and Hera gave Rhea a pause as she looked to them; though not many in the room could recognize it, there was a wordless conversation between the three of them within a few seconds. Demeter and Hera believed Gaia to be exaggerating and refused to take the claim seriously. Their exchanges solidified each other's beliefs and when Rhea caught sight of it, she had interpreted it correctly. Her eyes narrowed briefly at the pair, jumping between them as she silently scolded them for disbelief. Though Hera challenged Rhea's disapproval, Demeter pulled her eyes from the conversation and many, such as Zeus, were left staring at the three wondering what had just happened.

"She panicked and stirred, trying to gain Nyx' attention. She wanted to awake you all, to remove the hold Hypnos had and let you destroy these new inventions that were draining her. Though I can't be sure, it seems Nyx went on to ignore her for centuries, letting the mortals draw on her and slowly destroy her spirit.

"Gaia has started awakening you herself when she couldn't find me," Rhea explained quietly at first, her thoughts wandering over to her own fate in the sleep and feeling empathy for everyone else in the room. "It seems to have taken a lot out of her, between that and what the mortals are doing to her, but she was able to work up enough energy to wake a few. Dionysus and Pan were first, though Dionysus was unable to hear her…" Rhea's voice trailed off as her eyes scanned over to the wine god who had been slumped in the chair and suddenly stiffened his back and averted his eyes. Hermes barely stifled a snicker, who received a glare from Hera but it didn't do much to quiet him down. "She said when Pan disappeared, she panicked. Not knowing where I or he were, she focused her attentions on all of you and though she succeeded, she hastened her deteriorating condition."

Rhea suddenly paused and frowned, her eyes falling to the ground as she seemed to be pulled back into the memory of her mother. Seeing her condition had not been pleasant, as it was disturbing in itself as well as a hint that immortality was not absolute. Even her husband survived in pieces at the bottom of Tartarus, something Rhea rarely discussed but she constantly _knew_. She had begun to avoid the Underworld or being anywhere near it, as she could hear him particularly clearly. But Gaia's condition was akin to ageing and death, as if she had caught some disease of the mortals and was crumbling slowly and painfully. If there had been anything Rhea could always count on in her many years, it was her mother; suddenly seeing the threat of that disappearing caused her expressive pain. Before she knew it, she felt Hades' hand on her shoulder and she gasped slightly, turning to look at him and offered a thanking smile. As she placed her hand on his, she turned back to the council who were all staring at her. Before she continued, Athena stirred and a few eyes pulled in her direction.

"As observers, did you not realize the mortals were no better off without us?" she questioned harshly, as if Rhea were testifying for her actions. Athena leaned forward, placing a hand on her knee and ignored the glares she was receiving from various older gods. "After the fall of the Rome, they were lost on all counts of religion. They had no one to turn to for answers for no one was there to give them any. Our disappearance incited mock religions to take hold, religions in which they prayed to vacant gods and fought bloody battles in the name of _nothing_. At least when they died in our names, there was a cause – a real reason to it all, but now you made their deaths more meaningless than life itself."

"_Athena_," Demeter hissed from across the circle, but no one else seemed to come to Rhea's aid. While the war goddess' tone was particularly harsh and her words were spit out like daggers, the information was correct and needed to be said. Because of this generalized feeling and Athena's need to rationalize everything, she ignored Demeter and even sat forward in her chair, staring the titan down.

"At what point did you not realize that they were creating pestilence in their own filth? Or that their systems of hierarchy were cruel and, in some places, much worse than any of us could have imagined? You made this arbitrary decision to remove us from the picture and rather than use the time to see how cruel the mortals were to them_selves_, you ignored the facts and let things worsen until lives were in danger. You selfishly stuck to your decision, whether or not you were proven wrong, and only when in desperate need of help did you think maybe – _maybe _you had made the wrong decision. So tell me this, _grandmother_, did any of you really think you were doing this for the mortals or for yourselves?"

When the question was delivered, the room was silently divided. Many of the younger gods agreed with her, like Ares who grinned maliciously at Rhea and Hermes who nodded, ready to stand up and shout in her favor; however the direct children of Rhea were conflicted. They felt the need to protect their mother from Athena's sharp tongue, but simultaneously agreed with her words. When the lingering eyes turned to Rhea, it was mildly uncomfortable how unaffected she looked by the speech until her mouth twisted into a small frown.

"You are right, my dear," she said quietly, nodding slowly and cleverly avoided the final question. "Unfortunately, I was given the same fate as all of you. I did not have the chance to see this evolution or see the error of my ways - though in reality I can't say I would have done anything about it. I think most everyone here can appreciate how difficult it is to admit your faults and change them, especially one so drastic."

The answer didn't satisfy Athena as evident by her pinched lips but as she opened her mouth to reply, Zeus raised his hand. Sighing her energy out, Athena leaned back in the chair to relax, but her eyes were still fierce with thoughts and unspoken points. Apollo, to her right, smirked at her as he could see her restless energy and she glared at him in return. Zeus placed his hand down on the arm of the chair, taking in a slow and deep breath to keep himself calm. There was much about this discussion that enraged him but in the presence of Rhea, he was much less likely to shout. Clenching his jaw together, he was giving himself time to sort out his thoughts before saying anything that would incite another argument.

"What is done is done," Zeus announced carefully, his voice emitting the power and authoritative energy while his jaw seemed clenched and strained. He was always an advocate for looking passed offenses and forgiving old crimes, but almost never when they were directed towards _him_. To forgive his mother for her part in this was a grand gesture, recognized everyone immediately, though Hera alone could see how much it strained him. "Our objective now is to deal with this instable situation. And war is _not_ our goal." The blue eyes flashed over to Ares who was visibly disappointed.

"That may be harder than you think," Rhea sighed quietly. "Nyx refuses an audience with Gaia and says she will attack until things are returned to normal. Gaia, in turn, wants us to declare war on the mortals, hitting her sister where she is least able to defend. Neither side seeks peace."

"Nor is peace applicable at this point," Athena added, retorting quickly and fiercely to Rhea, as the goddess was still not satisfied in voicing her displeasure. She shifted her shoulder, sniffing her crumpled nose as the eyes turned on her. "Fighting both sides would cripple us greatly and clearly Nyx will not adhere to a neutral stance. Siding with her means our return to perpetual sleep while aiding Gaia means our return to a normal state and resetting mortal life. The only logical choice is Gaia."

"_Logical_?" Aphrodite asked as she sat forward, her mouth opening slightly as a horrified look came over her face. "There is nothing _logical_ in murdering billions of lives or destroying years of history, knowledge and creativity. We would lose –"

"Expendable creatures," Athena interjected, her intensely focused eyes glaring at the love goddess. "The lives of mortals are insignificant in comparison to our own. Without us, they suffer. There is no contest here."

"Of course there is!" Aphrodite nearly shrieked, slamming her fist against the arm of her chair as she shifted towards the edge of it, on the verge of standing in passion of the argument. Ares seemed to join her at the edge, eyeing her as if she would lose her clothes any moment; the slight smirk on his face indicated his pure enjoyment of her debating his immortal enemy. "They suffer in your _mind_ because it takes years for them to learn. Yes, they died in battles, yes, they've scarified to no one and _yes_ they created their own diseases – but it was nothing different than when all of you were awake! Except … for maybe, they had no one to blame but themselves … but the point is that they pulled out of it! They learned from it and have a beautiful lifestyle and history that isn't some… some _garbage_ to ignore!"

Artemis cleared her throat, the awkward tension of Aphrodite's emotions settling into the room. She was clearly not the best debater, let alone someone to stand against Athena, but the wavering in her voice and the tears forming in her eyes had caught many of them off guard. It was rare – if not obscene – that any god would cry in the name of mortals. Often it was the younger ones, the less experiences that shed emotions over those who perished within a blink of an eye. Despite everyone knowing Aphrodite was not the most emotionally stable goddess, she had never cried in a council meeting. The feeling was uncomfortable and it was drowning them.

"Perhaps a break would be prudent," Rhea quietly observed, her eyes lingering on the crying goddess.

"No," Athena harshly added, her eyes narrowing as her stubbornness suddenly flared up. "Better than anyone, _you_ should know that love doesn't always mean doing the _right_ thing. Just because she has grown attached to the mortals does not mean her opinion is worth anything more – it should, in fact, exclude her –"

"Athena," Hera groaned, already knowing this conversation was going sour.

"Emotions manipulate logic," Athena snapped quickly, barely turning to Hera to defend herself. "It gets in the way of making the correct decision."

"How dare you!" Aphrodite shrieked, standing to her feet to run at the war goddess but she found herself pulled back into her chair by Ares. She turned, glaring at him furiously and only enraged more when he grinned at her. "Let go!" she yelled at him, twisting her wrist, attempting to wiggle out of his grip, which only served to amuse him more. Hephaestus seemed to grunt something audibly across the room and Artemis glanced back to Athena, seeming to smirk at her slightly.

"Perhaps rushing to this decision is not the best approach," Hades added quietly from behind his chair, causing his mother to turn over her shoulder and look up at him with a slight smile.

"We also don't have the time to squabble about this," Poseidon added, raising the volume of his voice to be heard over Aphrodite and Ares' arguing. "We should be preparing for another attack."

"Attacking Olympus would not be wise," Athena seemingly mumbled, curling her nose up.

"We're not impenetrable," Hephaestus grunted, shaking his head as he stared at the ground. "Not to her."

"Ares, let her go," Hera sighed, still attempting to placate Aphrodite's stress. The war god shrugged it off as he let go of the goddess' wrists, causing her to spring up to her feet finally and point to Athena.

"Just because you don't know how to love anything doesn't mean you're always right!" Though her comment was a little late in the conversation (as she had been working on thinking something up), it caused a general pause in the murmuring of the meeting. Demeter put a hand up to her mouth, pressing her fingers against her lips to prevent from saying anything while everyone stared down the war goddess, awaiting for something from her. Ares laughed slightly and leaned back, the first to make a sound and though it didn't seem to take anyone's eyes off of Athena, it seemed to snap her into action. She stood up, something that Hera began to open her mouth to fix, but Zeus looked to her and she said nothing.

"The capacity to the love and the _desire_ to love are two completely separate things," Athena started off, glaring down her opponent who showed no sign of weakness. "But there is no sense in arguing that. The matter at hand is whether or not to side with a goddess who wishes us to sleep _eternally_, or one that is dying at the hands of creatures _we_ created. The purely selfish want to stay awake plays into my decision, of course, something you – no doubt – have _no_ concept of. "

"I lost _everyone_!" Aphrodite yelled back at her, finding Athena's calm demeanor more frustrating than the topic at hand. Hephaestus said something that caught some attention, but either the love goddess didn't hear or ignored him. "Do you think I _want_ that again? But destroying the mortals is not the answer!"

"Then what is, Aphrodite?" Athena snarled, stepping forward closer to the goddess, causing Hera to sit at the edge of her seat. "Please – _enlighten_ us on what other options we have here."

"I don't know!" she shouted as she closed her eyes, putting her hands on either side of her face to attempt to calm herself or think clearly. "But there has to be!"

"Another option does seem more appropriate," Apollo suddenly interrupted, glancing over the faces and promptly ignoring Athena who spun around to glare at him. Artemis blinked, looking to him with a look of shock over her face.

"Which would be what, exactly? We can't afford to let them destroy Gaia," his twin criticized loudly.

"Who said they were able to destroy her?" Hermes added, his face contorted as he was visibly confused. "She's hurt, yes, drained, yeah. But that could be from forcing us to sleep and wake. I mean, she's _immortal_, right?"

"We didn't think we could be forced to sleep, either," Demeter mumbled audibly.

"Let's just destroy them," Ares groaned as he lifted his head to the ceiling. "We can create more later."

"NO!" Aphrodite exclaimed and turned to him, slapping his leg, which caused him to stand up. Ares, who was suddenly enraged, caused the council room to break out into an argument. He stood up to start arguing with Aphrodite, getting close to her face and causing her to push him back. Athena and Artemis were ganging up on Apollo, arguing with him over their options versus the prophecy. Dionysus groaned as he leaned back in the chair, holding a hand over his ear as he complained about the noise. Hera stood up to break up the argument between Ares and Aphrodite, but Zeus held her back, which caused a separate fight between them. Poseidon laughed as he caught their argument and, much to Zeus' annoyance, stood up and separated the love and war gods. Hestia had moved back, closer to the mother, since the arguing had made her uncomfortable. Placing a hand on her daughter's shoulder, Rhea looked to Hades and started mumbling about the situation. Hermes and Demeter were calmly debating the concept of Gaia dying at the mortals' hands.

"Look at your council!" Hera howled at Zeus, throwing her arm out to show him the disaster the arguments had created. She was standing over him while he still sat, glaring up at her but not fully engaged in the argument. "This has turned into a charade and you're doing _nothing_!"

"This needs to come out one way or another," he calmly sat, barely looking around at the arguing room.

"So you let it happen _here_?" she asked, her eyes widening in horror. "Be the leader you're _supposed_ to be and stop this nonsense!"

"ALL RIGHT!" Zeus yelled suddenly as he stood to his feet, now towering over his wife as he stared down at her. His voice had carried into the ceiling and the walls around the room, causing them to shiver from the thunderous sound. The noise and reverberation of his voice caused everyone to stop immediately, many turning to him and others just simply stopping in their place. A shiver went down Hera's spine from the vibration and she closed her eyes, trying to ignore the memories that his voice created for her at times. "Sit down!" he snapped to his right, glaring at the cluster of gods who had rose from their seats in the midst of the arguing. Hera was the first to take her place and quickly, while everyone else sat down at nearly the same time. Ares frowned when Aphrodite sent a final glare his way, knowing this argument would carry over into the bedroom at some point – something he often hated and tried to avoid. Zeus, however, remained standing as he glared across each face in the room, waiting for one of them to dare try and speak up or against him. When he looked to Hera, she was one of the few who didn't break the eye contact and he narrowed his eyes slightly, biting back at urge to yell at her in front of everyone.

"We side with Gaia," he announced, still angry and glared over to Aphrodite as he awaited her plea. She did nothing except make a small sound, a whimper as she tried to choke back a cry. Turning his eyes to Rhea, he nodded to her and turned his back on the council room, mumbling the meeting was over in order for the seal of the room to be broken. Ares tried to take Aphrodite's hand, but she pulled it away from him and stormed out of the room, quickly followed by the blacksmith god. Ares growled, muttering under his breath as he kicked the leg of her chair before leaving. Demeter sighed, leaning forward as she placed her hands in her face. Rhea pushed herself up from the chair, frowning slightly at the outcome of the meeting. Hades turned to leave but she reached out, touching his shoulder to cause him to turn back and look up at her.

"I'm sorry," she whispered to him. "I know how .. upset you were –"

"It's done," he cut her off quietly, turning his eyes away from her briefly before walking away. By the time she turned around to look back into the chambers, everyone but Hestia had left. The fire in the center was crackling as the mother and daughter looked at each other. Smiling, Rhea brushed a hair out of her daughter's eyes.

"Why not me?" Hestia asked quietly, almost enough to be covered by the crackling of the fire. Rhea's eyebrows furrowed for a moment as she tried to piece together the missing words in her question; when the smile washed over her lips, she realized what she was asking.

"Oh darling," she replied with equal softness in her voice, placing her hand on her shoulder. She paused, thinking back to the decisions that went into their planning, just exactly who to keep awake and who not to – then her smile widened. "You were too powerful for us. "


	29. Chapter 28: No Different Than Before

Hermes whistled a familiar tune as he turned down the hall alone, avoiding certain gods purposefully in hopes to obtain a day free of work. His given job was appreciated in the fact that he was freely able to leave and return to Olympus whenever possible, not obligated to stay, like Hestia, or forced to walk like the rest. But he had also come to be known as the messenger for _everyone_, not just the privileged few. Every so often he was able to toss a message off to someone else, such as Iris, but most of the time it would be an insult not coming from him.

He certainly didn't see that when he was free and able to do as he wished, he caused trouble; he would reign chaos on mortals and immortals alike when bored, so Zeus had been extremely careful to make sure boredom never struck him. Even his good friend Apollo would toss out a request when a sigh lingered on the messenger's lips, just to get him out of his room and away from his precious supplies. So the cycle went: Hermes worked and tried to find freedom, while everyone else tried to find him and keep him occupied. As he slipped around the corner, keeping his eyes locked on the hallway behind him, he failed to notice Zeus was standing at the end of the hallway, waiting and watching. With an eyebrow lifted, he watched his son eyeball the area around him, searching for no doubt his demanding father. When the messenger turned around to face him, his eyes grew wide in a slight surprise and panic before he grinned, conceding to the god's authority.

"Follow Rhea," Zeus announced as he lifted his arms up against his chest, crossing them and letting a small grin form across his lips. More often than not, it was Hera who kept him busy or kept an eye on him – as it was often her job to watch over the others (or so they had silently agreed upon). In this moment of seeing the god stricken with the annoyance of being caught and the anticipation of being free afterwards, Zeus wondered why he hadn't done this more often. "Explain to Gaia that we only side with her on certain conditions: this is a punishment for the mortals, not an extermination. When we have destroyed all that harms her, we cease and start over. Perhaps this mercy on them will lighten Nyx' opinion of us."

Hermes nodded quickly and started down the hall, but his hand was forced out against the wall to stop him when Zeus called after him. Turning over his shoulder, the inevitable doom of the next words were lingering and Hermes, once the words were said, was bound by obligation to return.

"Report to me when you're done."

Resisting the urge to groan, he forced a nod and disappeared behind the corner of the hallway. Zeus let a larger grin form afterwards, unable to resist the humor the moment had given him. As he spun around, he was put in Hermes' position by the sudden presence of his wife, Hera and his eyes grew wide for a moment. He, however, took the moment to look around and wonder where she had been hiding. Her nose scrunched up as she realized what he was doing and she placed her hands on her hips, muffling a huff with not much success.

"Why didn't you tell that to everyone?" she asked quietly, her voice soft and concerned – a tone Zeus rarely heard from her. He blinked, now taking the time to look down, locking eyes with her. She had concerned laced over her face, something more pleasant to the eye now than he had seen in the past few days. Unfortunately, his annoyances with her masked the moment and he broke the eye contact, waving a hand in the air.

"It is a decision of a king, not a council," he muttered under his breath, clenching his jaw tightly when he spoke the words through his teeth. His grudges with her were evident in his body language and speech, something often common between them and while he was turning away, he anticipated her reciprocation.

He was, instead, met with a soft hand on his arm and a quiet sigh.

Zeus' eyes twitched for a moment, as if flinching from a trick of hers or awaiting the true punch line of this joke. Hera, trying hard not to notice every movement of his and take it personally (which was a great feat for her), was looking up at him as neutrally as possible. Her mind was racing with the words of Poseidon and the blatant rage he had towards her in the chaotic council room.

"Sweetheart," the word came out of her lips so casually and honestly, but the unique nature of it coming from her was not lost on either of them. His eyebrows lifted slightly and she twitched her lips into a small smile, pausing to feel the word settle upon them. It was almost as if they had forgotten what it was like to be together, as a couple rather than a feuding pair of leaders. His shoulders seemed to relax into the idea and she placed a hand up onto his cheek, causing his eyes to close momentarily.

"Please," Hera sighed as she tilted her head forward towards her husband and placed her forehead on his chest. Leaning against him, she let her hand slid down his cheek, neck and onto his arm while she sighed again. "Please let's talk."

The word _talk_ never sat well with Zeus; he was neither a great conversationalist nor one to explain his actions or emotions. Hera, on the other hand, believed most things were cured through expression and did her best to pull him into conversations about their problems. Overtime she had slowly began to learn that he didn't fix problems by talking them out, but rather reacted to actions. It was how Hera learned to target his mortal conquests and children, as it was the only way for him to recognize them and what he did - and face her for it.

But the weight of carrying their grudges, with everything else he was cracking under, was enough to relent to her wishes and follow his wife to her room - apparently her version of a neutral ground. His blue eyes ignored the details of the room as they were burned into his memory from the years of laying at her bedside. When she turned and sat in the same place he had not budged from in the years proceeding, he flinched slightly and moved to sit in her desk chair instead. Straining to not look pained by his choice, he failed to recognize the pain in her eyes and sat down ignorant of her thoughts.

Hera sat up perfectly straight and waved her hand in the air, letting the door bend to her will and close of its own accord. Her eyebrows twitched as she carefully thumbed through the scrolls of things she wanted to say to him, but held her tongue for a different time. When she finally seemed to have a handle on what she wanted to say, she shifted her shoulders and stared him directly in the eye.

"Why did we marry?"

The question caught the god completely off guard; he had imagined a speech, explaining all the things he had done wrong over the last few months. He expected her to berate him for his lacking leadership skills and his inability to form a strong council. He was visibly confused by her question as he leaned forward, as if waiting for her to laugh or start yelling at him instead. When she was unmoved, he leaned back with his eyebrows raised high on his forehead.

"What do you mean?" he asked rather ignorantly, not trying to play stupid but rather legitimately confused.

"I don't remember anymore," she replied quickly, her tone coming off cold and heartless at first. She seemed to hear herself immediately and brought a hand up to her mouth, scratching her lower lip and trying to change the manner in which she went about this. "I feel like we fight so often. The only thing that brought us closer was the threat of death, and even then -"

"Not death," Zeus corrected her, not wanting to relate her sleep with death. Though the technicality was small, he needed that assurance that it wasn't final; death was finite, sleeping was not. Unfortunately he did not have the hindsight to realize how correcting her would offend her and, just after noting the glare she gave him, he realized it.

"Even _then_," she continued on despite her aggravation. "It was limited. We were fighting within months."

"What are you saying?" he asked suddenly, his tone warming up into a defensive position.

Closing her eyes, bringing her hands up to her face and pressing her fingertips into her forehead. The headache that was forming was bound to get bigger as the conversation went on. For him (and males in general), the conversation wasn't the point but rather the end meant more. Where this conversation was going to lead them was more important to him than the road to it, which was the opposite of Hera's (and females') intentions.

"I'm trying to figure out where we're going wrong," she groaned behind her hands, her patience already thinning.

"We're not doing anything different than before," he commented quickly, wondering why their rocky relationship was suddenly being questioned.

"And that doesn't bother you?" she asked loudly, her face emerging from behind her hands to look at him shocked. "Why do we do this?"

"Because we love each other," the words came out quickly, meaning he didn't have time to think about it or make it up, but his tone was most certainly awkward. The pair hardly said the word love, let alone to each other. Though his ability to say it was endearing, Hera couldn't act quickly enough to suppress a laugh.

"We certainly don't act like it," she tossed off, turning over her shoulder to look away from him. The comment caused him to stand up, his eyes hardening in a slight anger as he took offense to her laughing at him.

"We aren't those kinds of people," he stiffly explained, unable to eloquently word what he meant by it. She shook her head, still keeping her shoulder blade to him and refused to look back. He clenched his jaw, doing his best to not burst out into a rage; most of the time, their arguments ended in that manner and he had noticed she was avoiding that same usual fate. Feeling uneasy by the topic at hand, he told himself perhaps bursting out into a rage wasn't the most appropriate way to deal with this.

"Listen to me –" he said, pausing for her to turn back at him and when she didn't, he turned around to face the wall. Clenching his fist and tensing up his arm, he held back punching the desk or wall in front of him and rather looked up to the ceiling and took a breath. "I didn't marry you because you were soft and gentle, or weak. I … fell in the love with you because you are strong, stubborn and everything I am too, but different. You are … just different than me, enough to be a better king than I am at times." His tone changed from a softer, loving manner to a more stubborn, subdued anger. It was difficult to admit this to himself and near excruciating to say it aloud to her. He had been perfectly satisfied with the bulk of their relationship being untold, just silently understood. "I can't do this without you and I _won't_. So this conversation is moot."

Spinning around to face her, in hopes that she had turned around by now and when she hadn't, a growl was released in his throat. He started to step around the bed to physically confront her and that's when he noticed a hand fly up to her face and wipe away a tear. His eyes widened as he froze suddenly, stunned by the visual. In all of their immortal years together, even when the worst was before them, he had never seen Hera cry. He had never known her to shy from an argument, to step down from a fight or crumple under pressure. It was, most certainly, the reason they had so many fights and disagreements but it was also an admirable quality. At even the suggestion of her backing down from something, he had always assumed in his mind he would love her less – but now seeing his solemn queen shed tears, he felt a surge of guilt that he had never known before with her and a sensation to protect her, even if it was from himself.

"You," he started quietly, stumbling over the words to explain how strange this was for him. "You _never_ cry."

"You never _see_ me cry," she corrected after she sniffed, her thumb rubbing the lower orb of her eye where a tear had been resting. She continued to refuse eye contact, ultimately not proud of her inability to hide her pain any longer. She, like Zeus, had assumed the worst would happen if she ever presented weakness to him; weakness was not a quality of leadership, and tears were a visible and tangible weakness in her mind. Despite knowing this expression of emotion might lead to a dangerous path between them, she was slowly realizing how comforting it felt to finally show him what was going on. She breathed in a few times, trying to soothe her racing heart as she turned her eyes slowly to the left, begging to make eye contact but fighting the shame she was still feeling. "I don't understand how you can … say you love me when you …"

The sentence wasn't completed as she was overwhelmed by a sob and her head turned away. That final attempt to hold it back did the very opposite it wished: it unleashed a flood of sobbing and painful cries from her chest, sounding as if the emotion was actually physically harming her. The years of pent up aggression, jealousy, sadness and hurt balled up into this moment and blinded her from understanding why, exactly, she was crying. It just poured out of her without reason and, though painful in essence, was physically satisfying to release.

Meanwhile, Zeus was utterly devastated by the turn of events. Finally seeing his wife in a moment of pure sadness and hearing that pain in her cries at first paralyzed him. He stood there in shock, listening to her sobs with a dumbfounded look and a breaking heart. For all the pain and suffering he had caused in the world and to her, he had always been a compassionate and caring god. Often the decision he had to make or the actions he took justified the means or taught a valuable lesson, but it was more often than not he who saved mortals from a perilous doom or longtime suffering. The compassion that flooded him simultaneously instigated the guilt for all the times he had cursed at her, called her names or ripped her apart verbally. He had flashes of the physical torment he had caused her when yelling didn't work and then the nights when he couldn't find her – when she was hiding from him, or so it seemed, he imagined were the times she let these tears flow in silence and isolation. The guilt was overwhelming, but for the current moment, her sobs were physically harmful. Every tear that fell down her cheek felt like a rip at his skin and each sob was like a punch to his stomach.

Desperate to stop this, he sat down next to her on the bed and wrapped her up in his arms. Normally his touch in the heat of argument was unwanted, but Hera simply leaned up against him and attempted to bury her burning face into his chest. Zeus started to tense his arms up, tightening his grip on her and he kissed the top of her head.

"Stop," he whispered to her, closing his eyes and hoping this was over soon. "I can fix this."

"How?" she barely whispered between the sobs and the muffling of his chest. She suddenly started to push against him and he eased his hold on her, allowing her the space to back up and looked up at him. Her eyes were bloodshot red and her cheeks were flushed, a sight that would be endearing if not for the circumstances. Her eyes focused on him intently as he simply stared down at her and she tried to find his thoughts, attempting to read what he was thinking before his mouth opened.

"Don't worry about it," came out without thought or hesitation, thinking perhaps giving no option to think it over would help the situation. Unfortunately it aggravated Hera to be left out of the plans and his thoughts once again and she narrowed her eyes, her stubborn nature flaring up behind the red eyes and burning cheeks.

"How am I supposed to know you mean it this time?" she tried to sound menacing but her nose had become stuffed from the crying. "You can't just _say_ you're going to fix it. I need to know _how_."

The frustration within Hera seems to reignite that of Zeus' and he tensed up momentarily, tempted to shut her down and end the conversation at this point. The newfound guilt he had acquired by her tears was the only thing holding him back, though even that could not contain his nature forever.

"I _can_ and I will," he stubbornly replied.

Taking in a breath quickly, Hera held it for a moment as if to hold her breath forever. She looked away from him, staring off into the distance as her thoughts were placed in order appropriately. She constantly struggled with loving the man for his stubbornness and leadership, but not when it was directed at her. Letting the breath out in a long sigh, she stood up from the bed while wiping the remaining wet from her cheeks. Rubbing her fingers underneath her eyes, she closed them as she placed her mindset back into her stoic nature. Turning to face him, it almost looked as if the past few minutes had never happened. She placed each hand on either side of his face and leaned down, placing a soft kiss on his lips and just as he leaned forward into it, she pulled away.

"I love you and that will never change. But if this is going to work, you can't keep doing this to me," she asserted in a very serious manner, barely changing her face to emphasize what this meant to her. "I can't believe you until it's done."

As she tried to move around the bed to leave, he grabbed her wrist and shot up from the bed, his eyes glaring down at her fiercely. She paused as her arm felt tugged by it and she looked over her shoulder, up to meet his angry look.

"Or _what_?" he demanded from her, his voice low but strained with a warning. There was a real sense of threat coming from her and, as much as he loved her, he would not accept intimidation on any level. Her eyes flashed down at his hand that easily wrapped around her wrist and she glared at it.

"Let go of me," she chided as she curled her hand into a fist. Even knowing he was impossible to physically defeat, she tensed her arm up when he didn't immediately let her go. Zeus clenched his jaw, feeling her muscles tighten and the two were frozen in that position for a silent few seconds. When he finally released her, Hera took no hesitation in storming out immediately after. She launched forward towards the door, which opened at the flick of her wrist and before he could breath, she was gone.

Left to realize the intense variation this entire conversation had had, he was left with nothing but the anger of her ability to make him feel guilty and then storming out on him in a rage. He hand clenched into a fist, unable to find any other way of expressing himself than punching a column in her room. His knuckles slammed into the marble, causing the room to quiver slightly and the weather outside to darken. When he removed his fist, an indent of his middle and index knuckle were left behind and a small crack climbing upwards. He sniffed at the mark, unapologetic and turned, marching out of the room to find something (or someone) to take his mind off of his rage.


	30. Chapter 29: They and Them

Unsure of how quickly Rhea worked, Hermes had set to the task of finding her immediately. He had already wasted enough time trying to avoid Zeus before given the task and now, determined, he was searching all corners of Olympus for her. He had even taken to ignoring those around him, like Apollo who called out to him and Khloé who had asked for directions. When he came across Dionysus and Iris chatting, the pale goddess was kind enough to direct him where the titan had last been seen and he raced across the courtyard in that general direction. As he neared a pillar, looking behind him as he heard a noise, the muttering of two distinct voices was clear: Rhea and an unknown male.

The voice was familiar, Hermes noted, but not by the sound of it. Rather the authoritative and confident tone that he carried with him. He seemed in control of everything around him and completely comfortable in this world, no matter where he stood. Leaning in towards the pillar, maneuvering to hide his body adequately, he tried to keep as close to the pair as possible to hear every word.

"I don't understand," Rhea replied to the unheard statement beforehand, her voice filled with obvious fear though her volume remained at a calm level. "You never interfere."

"I have never seen a need to before," he asserted. Hermes' eyes focused on the ground as he seemed to glare at it, trying immensely hard to place where he had heard this strong of a voice before.

"Why didn't you stop us from forcing them to sleep?" Rhea questioned, obviously missing a key clue in this puzzle.

"The outlook was not clear until now," the male replied with the same intensity as before, not offended by the question but obviously displeased to be questioned so adamantly.

There was a sigh from Rhea and, if Hermes could imagine her doing anything based off her tone, it would be placing a hand up on her head. She was more obviously frustrated by the conversation though both were able to keep themselves under control. Placing the temple of his head against the cool pillar, Hermes tried to hold his breath as not to tip them off of his presence.

"So what now?" she asked exasperated.

"That I cannot say," he stated plainly. "You should be on your way. Hermes is ready for you."

Resisting the urge to groan at being caught, the messenger god slowly slipped out from behind the pillar. He saw Rhea looking at him, a small grin on her face as if she had caught a child of hers sneaking cookies. Hermes smiled slightly at her, her warming nature enveloping him instantly but his curiosity pulled his attention to the male at hand and Hermes' eyes widened.

"You," he let roll out of his mouth without thinking, his jaw remaining slightly open as he looked upon the same male god that had stopped the fight between the Olympians and the Nebïaids. The male smiled slightly at him but did not move.

"Ah, yes, I suppose you've met Moros already," Rhea introduced with a higher tone, a smile placing on her lips and a hand landing on the male's shoulder. Hermes' wide eyes turned from Moros to Rhea, still flabbergasted by his presence on Olympus let alone her calm nature about it. Waving a hand in the air to dismiss his silence, she walked forward and smiled to the smaller god. "Come, let's be off."

Hermes didn't move immediately as he was continually attempting to word a response to the matter at hand but when Rhea grabbed his arm and tugged him away, he followed her like a good grandson and turned his back on Moros. Within seconds, Hermes shook his head and placed a hand on it forward, then suddenly pulled his arm out of Rhea's grasp.

"Wait-wait-wait," he blurted out all in one breath, but even though he stopped in his tracks, Rhea continued walking on. Glancing behind him to no longer see the male god in question, he rushed to keep up with her once again and looked up at her, squinting. "Why was he here? And who is he?"

"He is a child of Nyx," she stated simply, the weight of that idea not falling on her as heavy as it did on Hermes. There was a moment's pause where the god just stared at her, waiting for more information and she continued to walk straight ahead without looking at him. She finally noticed the awkward silence between them and when she looked down at his anticipating face, she raised her eyebrows and laughed slightly. "He is a quadruplet with the fates, their brother to put it simply. He sees the fate and future of the gods, whereas they see the fate and future of the mortals."

"I've never heard of him," Hermes mumbled, finally tearing the eye contact between them and observing the world around them as they walked.

"I would think not," Rhea noted, nodding her head a few times. "We often came to him for prophecy, but eventually we learned that his prophecies caused more trouble than they were worth. He caused paranoia in my husband and in Zeus. When we stopped coming to him, he retreated in seclusion and simply watched the future happen."

Hermes' eyebrows rose up high on his forehead as he let that idea settle in on him, wondering what life would be like to see it unravel for a second time constantly. To know that no matter what changes, you see the events before they ever happen. He supposed, as he looked up in thought, that would more often than not prevent him from creating mischief, as he would have to deal with the consequences twice. He also noted that if he saw everything ahead of time, he too would not interact with the world. By the time his thoughts came back around to Rhea and their mission, he noted they were heading away from the main road towards a cave. Hermes' eyebrows furrowed as he silently questioned what was going on, looked around for clues as to their whereabouts and when nothing was offered up, he stopped in his tracks.

"Wait where are we going?" he asked in a blatantly confused tone.

"Just follow me," she frowned as they reached the edge of the cave. Rhea looked up at the top of the entrance and her eyes followed the left side down to the ground, as if she was looking for clues or hints of foul play. When Hermes began investigating with her, the large goddess stepped forward fearlessly into the dark and the messenger had to jump to keep up.

They walked in the damp darkness for several minutes in silence, their feet being the only indication that both of them were still moving further into the cave. Though Hermes was an explorer, he found it difficult to follow someone else into the unknown. He placed a hand on the cold wall of the cave and let his fingers drag across is as they wandered further in.

"Hermes," Rhea called out from behind him suddenly and he spun around, facing the darkness that blinded him from seeing her. He frowned slightly, trying to place where the voice had come from. "Here."

There was barely a sound to match the sliding on the edge of the wall. In the pure darkness, it was easy to see the match lighting and revealing the titan's face. Hermes instinctively moved closer to her, closing in on the small amount of light and fire she created. Hermes could barely make out the candle she pulled from a pocket and he raised an eyebrow, noted she must have been planning this for a while.

"What're you doing?" he questioned loudly, eyeing the flame that transferred to the wick.

"We need to be able to see," Rhea barely clarified, her smile evident as she only briefly glanced at Hermes before looking at the surrounding darkness. "Erebus, come to us."

Then there was silence. The two of them barely breathed as they tried to listen for any motion in the darkness. Hermes barely knew of Erebus, as he had never interacted with Olympians or done anything worthy of tales. The messenger god knew of the primordial god based off of old tales of creation and the world before Olympus. All he knew was of Erebus' marriage to Nyx and they had many, _many_ children. He squinted at something he thought moved to Rhea's left, but assumed was a trick of the darkness.

"Erebus!" Rhea shouted, causing the messenger god to wince as the echoes were painful – he was unaware how powerful of a voice she had. As if the air was being sucked out around him, Hermes felt the pull of what little warmth was in the air towards central location. A shiver went down his spine as he saw reminisce of a body behind formed from the skeleton, but he chose to turn away and pretend it was another trick. Rhea, however, turned her gaze to the same location and watched intently, an eyebrow lifting as she awaited his arrival.

"_What_?" came the voice from that central location, where now as Hermes turned to look, all he could see were a pair of white eyes that were focusing on Rhea.

"I have a favor to ask of you," she explained calmly, despite his annoyed tone.

"Oooh no," Erebus decreed, waving a finger in the air though it was rather difficult to see. He started to lean forward towards the light, but then flinched at its brightness and retreated further into the darkness. "I refuse to involve myself in your petty squabbles."

"Your wife said the same for centuries," Rhea retorted as she raised an eyebrow.

"Nyx is a female," Erebus grinned, which was obvious in his tone. "It's in her nature to interfere."

Hermes had to stifle a laugh, which was much easier when Rhea sent a glare in his directions. He shrugged it off, turning his gaze down to his feet to remove himself further from the conversation.

"There is too much as stake to not be involved," Rhea hinted at something much bigger than what was obviously there, and Hermes squinted, wondering if she was hiding something from Erebus or him.

"For _you_," he contended as he leaned back in the darkness, making himself comfortable in the nothingness around him. "Whatever happens in this world will not affect me. It never has and _why_ Nyx involved herself in a world she can live without, I will never know."

"Because she cares," the titan sighed and it suddenly became very obvious to Hermes that she had dealt with this god before.

"Oh, right!" Erebus exclaimed as he threw his arms in the air. "And Gaia told Cronus to lop off Ouranos' dick because she _cared_. And you helped Zeus chop Cronus into bits because you _care_. I've seen the worst of what immortals can do and I thank you kindly, but I refuse to join in on _that_ brand of fun."

Hermes grinned and quickly decided he liked this god, although he couldn't say he would be able to be so impartial in his life. Somehow, in the darkness, the messenger god knew the primordial god had smiled back at him. It was by his grace that Hermes stole, spied and fought in the darkness without being seen and for the first time since they stepped into the cave, the god was comfortable in the darkness.

"These are different times, Erebus," Rhea continued, barely noticing Hermes throughout the conversation. "Zeus' reigned proved stability and control. We can have that back again –"

"_You_, my dear," Erebus interrupted. "You, my wife and Gaia are the ones that ruined that. Once again, your interference caused countless problems. Perhaps this time, you will learn meddling does nothing –"

"There won't be a next time," Rhea blurted out, her tone slightly panicked, though from Hermes' eye she was still utterly calm. "Moros came to me on Olympus. He warned me that if we continue this path without change, that this world will perish and the titans will rule again. My _husband_ will rule again."

Hermes clenched his jaw at the thought and froze in the dark, noting that Erebus was silent as well – though he assumed was for different reasons. The messenger god had never met Cronus, thankfully, but he could not imagine him as a kind god who would pardon a son of Zeus simply because he wasn't around at the time of his defeat. The first sound after this information was Erebus moving in the darkness and he sighed, lifting a hand to scratch the top of his head.

"My son, eh?" he started off quietly, still maneuvering and each movement was indistinguishable from the next. "He must truly be concerned if he came to you on his own."

"I can only assume he sees horrible events," Rhea seemed to mumble, her eyes cast downward as she looked to be imagining such horrible things herself. "My husband is a vengeful god. He would have no pity –"

"Nor should he," the darkness growled. "There are far better fates than the one he suffers."

"He devoured my children," Rhea retorted defensively. "He was as cruel a leader as a father. The mortals might have been happy, but we weren't."

"I know," Erebus sighed, moving again and changing his position all together. Suddenly his voice came from the other side between Hermes and Rhea. "All right. What is this favor?"

"I need you to rescind your wedding gift," Rhea replied as neutral as possible, though Hermes could see it in her eyes that she was asking a lot. A few seconds of silence followed her before there was a crack in the air and the darkness shifted; Erebus opened his mouth and laughed.

"You want me to restrict my wife?" he asked, clearly taken aback but such a loaded request.

"She can only travel during the day because of you," Rhea started to clarify but a hand was put up and Erebus laughed once again.

"You ask me to start a war with my wife, not help end one," he snarled.

"She won't listen to reason and obviously isn't listening to Moros –"

"You don't know that!" he fumed suddenly, racing around the pair in the darkness with speed and ease. Rhea barely looked concerned as her eyes follow the source of the noise.

"Why else would he come to me instead?" the titan worded bluntly, reminding her of Athena and Hermes grinned at that irony. Huffing in the darkness, Erebus paused in his step (or glide - however he moved in the dark). It was obvious that he took Moros' visit seriously and that, most certainly, without that knowledge, Erebus would have laughed Rhea out of this cave. Hermes squinted in the darkness, trying to make out any facial expression the dark god may make, but all he could see were his eyes moving about the area. The messenger god quietly shushed his own jealously that Erebus could see perfect in pitch black.

"Why do you ask this of me?" the primordial god quietly asked, obviously struggling with the idea of helping out and causing harm in his martial life.

"Olympus doesn't want to fight her," Rhea explained carefully, obviously choosing her words wisely. "But ultimately they have sided with Gaia. They don't want to a war with your wife or children, but they need to help Gaia before the mortals destroy her."

"DESTROY her?" Erebus roared incredulously, tempted to lean forward to inspect Rhea for a joke but was deterred by the candlelight. "Mortals can't destroy us!"

"Have you seen her?" Rhea challenged, narrowing her eyes.

"No," Erebus admitted begrudgingly.

"All right," she suddenly replied with tone that the conversation was over. She lifted the candle up to her face and nodded. "Go to her. Then we'll talk again."

And with that, she turned her back on the pair and started walking out of the cave with the candle. The light was fading quickly as she marched straight ahead and Hermes, who had paused in temptation to say something to Erebus, burst into a sprint to catch up to her.

-

The distance from the cave onto Gaia's site apparently wasn't that far. Rhea's pace was quick and steady, which was a fun challenge for the short but speedy god. Grinning at one point as he fell behind, he jumped into the air and his shoes kicked into gear. Flapping as fast as they could, they propelled him in the air forward and next to Rhea, causing her to glance down at him non-too-amused. Shrugging his shoulder, he floated at her side for a few minutes before she began to slow down and the messenger looked down. The ground below them was thick, dark soil that looked to be recently plowed. It was about a meter wide and infinitely long. Placing his feet down on the ground to walk once again, he bowed down to touch the fertile soil. Scooping up a little piece in his hand, he sifted it between his fingers and looked around him, wondering where she was possibly hiding in this open field. He wandered a few feet ahead by the time he realized Rhea had stopped and she slowly sat down in the dark soil, placing the candle upright in it and placing her hand on the ground. Hermes, curious, walked back to her and leaned towards her face, almost close enough to breath hot air onto her cheeks. She sniffed, then opened one eye and grinned.

"Sit," she instructed and he obliged. "She is very weak, so patience is important."

Hermes shrugged it off as if patience were his winning virtue, but such idea was immediately shot as he began inspecting the area. There were trees lining the dark soiled pathway a few meters away and they were magnificent. They were large and reaching for the sky with bright green, orange and red leaves. It was a strange sight at first, seeing the colors were indicative of fall and yet the season was summer. The wind was cool, the temperature warm yet moderate and, besides the color of the leaves, there was no other sign of an early fall. He twitched his nose, assuming they were hallmarks of Gaia herself, a woman who loved variation and playing with her creations. He then turned his head to look to the barren lands to his left, then right. The grass just outside the soil was not healthy looking, but rather dying the closer it came to their pathway. Seeing as the pathway was perhaps the most fertile land Hermes had ever known, the idea that grass would die closer to it was counter-intuitive and disconcerting. He leaned back, placing his hands in the dirt behind him and he sighed loudly.

"Patience, Hermes," Rhea reminded him, her eyes still closed and enjoying the summer's air.

"I have a lot to do," he muttered as an excuse, though it was a blatant lie. At least having anything official to do was a lie - he had plenty he could find to do with free time. Just as Rhea was about to reply, Hermes let out a cry as he jumped to his feet and spun around to look at where he sat and there was an indent in the soil, much larger than Hermes. Rhea smiled and the ground slowly pulled further and further down until a head was shown popping through. As the eyes passed the horizon of soil, they flashed open to look up at the pair and though it was difficult to see, they both knew she was smiling. Rhea leaned forward, offering a hand to the primordial goddess and, slowly, a few fingers peeked through the dirt. They wiggled, trying with immense difficultly to pull through and when Rhea grabbed them and started to pull, Hermes realized what was happening: Gaia was building her own body from the soil. It was the same thing that Erebus had to do, but the darkness had shielded what a horror it truly was. The bones were revealed immediately and Gaia winced, trying to form them quicker but seemed unable. Rhea paused, letting the veins and muscles grow up from the soil onto the bones and form solid material under what was soon covered by dirty skin. Hermes, less disgusted than one would think, leaned forward to watch the details of the event unfold and knew that if Gaia were at full strength, this would not take nearly as long.

Her head was forced up and revealed the exposed jawbone. The process took another ten minutes before the rest of her body was full formed and pulled from the dirt, minus the pinky on her left hand was still skinless. She twitched her nose as she follow Hermes' gaze to the finger and she sniffed at it, squinting and mentally trying to grow the skin over. When she finally sighed and collapsed onto her soil, she gave up and let the finger remain as it wished.

It was at this point that Hermes was able to full look upon her and, even though he had a good idea of her suffering by her slow generation, he could now physically see it upon her. Her eyes were sunken in and tired, as if she could close them now and never open them again comfortably. Her lips were cracked, the wrinkles in her face insinuated she had smiled often once but didn't have the strength to do so anymore. She was bruised and cut in multiple places, with scars to show this was an ongoing event. A frown formed on his lips as he realized she was pulling down the formed dress on her body, trying to hide the marks that plagued her. Despite her appearance gaining sympathy to her cause, she was still ashamed of being this vulnerable and weak.

"I hope you bear good news," she mumbled in her sitting position, running a few fingers through her disheveled hair.

"We do," Rhea assured as she sat back down into the soil as well and beckoned Hermes to do the same. He did without pause, though staring at the earthen goddess the entire time. When her bright green eyes met his own gaze, he blinked, forced out of his thoughts on her condition and looked between them.

"Oh –" he started, just realizing they were awaiting word from him. "Zeus has officially sided with you."

"Yes," she sighed, sounding like the battle was already won.

"On the condition that this is not the extermination of the mortals," Hermes added, now maintaining his eyes on Gaia to avoid the look Rhea sent him.

"What?" Gaia retorted immediately, her eyebrows furrowing in anger though it was less fierce as he would normally imagine.

"Zeus feels this is a time to punish them, to erase the planet of what harms you and remind them exactly who we are. He wants to start over with them, starting with this," the messenger explained formally as he always did and he was wonderfully precise about his words and mannerisms. He spoke like a leader, even if he did not believe in the commandment, because it was important to convey the seriousness of the matter at hand. It was now that he let his eyes wandered over to Rhea as she and Gaia exchanged looks and, unfortunately for Hermes, he was unable to determine what they were saying.

Gaia leaned back as she placed her hands over her face, the bare boned pinky causing Hermes to stare and she groaned loudly. It was a moderately painful sounding, as if she had just lost something important to her and Hermes juggled with the idea of that being possible. After years of desperate attempts to wake up her grandchildren, she had finally succeeded only to find they weren't _completely_ on her side.

"I need _more_," Gaia moaned into her hands that were shielding her face as she leaned back against the ground that had risen to support her. She shook her head back and forth before peeking through two fingers to her daughter. "I need them gone."

"Perhaps this is better," Rhea suggested as she stretched a hand out, placing it on her mother's knee to give her support. "It is because of the mortals that we began this, after all-"

"I know that," the earthen goddess snapped, pulling her hands from her face and into a more formal seated position. She glared at Rhea first, then to Hermes. "They won't stop. It's in their nature to destroy what we give them."

"We shall see," he replied neutrally, giving off little indication of emotion.

The primordial goddess' face twisted at first, showing a hint of anger underneath her dissatisfaction but it was fleeting. As she leaned forward to pat Hermes' knee, the messenger god had recognized this moment from many years of his work; she was trapped by circumstances to agree and politely thank him for his efforts, but her ambition and subdued rage would not let it end here. For his part, however, he refused to show her his instincts on the matter and nodded at her touch.

"Thank you, Hermes," she seemed to sigh quickly, her deep brown eyes looking up to the sky and towards the west where the sun was crawling towards the horizon. "Please tell Zeus I thank him for this. Now please – Rhea and I have some matters to discuss privately."

He rose to his feet silently, biting back the temptation to question the matters and simply saluted them with his right hand. Rhea smiled genuinely while Gaia forced her own weary one. He nodded to them both before turning towards the forest and taking off into a run. As his feet left the ground, he turned over his shoulders to look back at the pair who was already in discussion. He attempted to eye their body language, hoping to decipher what they were saying from afar but as Gaia noticed him and stopped, he ran into the top of a tree and plummeted down into the forest.


	31. Chapter 30: Too Close to Danger

**Author's Note: Hey guys! Sorry about how long it took to update this time around. My computer was sent in for repairs. ;) **

"Uggh," Hermes groaned as he repositioned himself on the ground, putting a hand on his back where the pain was felt the most. His head was throbbing from the impact and he sat up slowly to regain his composure. Briefly imagining the laugh the two goddesses had at his expense, he could only grin at himself and how ridiculous he must have looked. Despite his pain, he even managed a laugh before he started to stand up. Much to his own confusion, however, as he leaned forward he felt pressure on his chest. It felt as if somewhere were standing there and preventing him from standing. His eyebrows furrowed, annoyed at the invisible presence and started to stand again, but this time what was a wall before now pushed back. He fell back onto the ground with a soft thump and he opened to his mouth to speak, but the words of another flooded the air around him.

"Just wait," the voice commanded and it was easily recognizable. Hermes paused, glancing about the shadows the forest created and he relaxed in his position, awaiting Erebus' body to form. At first, there was nothing was the rustling of the forest, which could have been the god or the animals that inhabited it. There was a grunt behind the messenger god, causing him to look over his shoulder but then a noise came from another directly. The groan from the god seemed to indicate difficulty forming, as there was sporadic light throughout. Hermes shifted out of the shadow of the tree he was previously laying in and stood up, brushing himself off as he waited. Despite no body present, Erebus grinned.

"I like you son," the god's voice reverberated throughout the area and though it seemed to come from everywhere, Hermes looked directly to the darkest spot in view. "Always have. You're a cheat, scoundrel, thief and a menace, but you're honest."

Hermes grinned, his eyebrows rising up as his ego grew a few more sizes and his chest puffed up to show it. The meaning of his words seemed counterintuitive, but both of them seemed to understand exactly what was meant by it.

"Rhea isn't exactly a liar, but she knows how to manipulate," the darkness growled. "She's good at it. I can't take her at her word but I can't see for myself either. Gaia hides from darkness because of Nyx; she chooses wide-open spaces during the day. I will never see her as Rhea hopes, so I need your eyes."

Hermes squinted at the darkness he had been looking at for during Erebus' words, the voice seemed to become more centrally located to that area. The Olympian stepped forward and saw the flash of teeth smiling at him. The messenger god nodded, noting the formed body and crossed his arms, his eyes looking upwards to search for the words.

"She's slow," he noted first as it was the first thing he had come to realize about her. "Slow to everything. To form, to talk, to move. She has the weakness of a mortal dying … as well as the fear."

The words caused a pause in the conversation. Hermes knew there was little left to say on the matter, for as much as he found disbelief in an immortal dying, there was no way to avoid it: Gaia was drained. Erebus seemed to shift in the darkness, leaning back as Hermes imagined him and pondering on the subject matter.

"Do you think it's true?" the words finally came out, the primordial god sounding more interested than skeptical. Hermes blinked, his mouth twisting as he thought about it for a few seconds before shrugging.

"She's damaged, that's for sure," he commented without much emotion. "Death seems like an extreme end, but for all she seems to be suffering, I suppose it's possible."

As the silence settled on them once again, Hermes shifted as he bit back a question he had been wondering since the cave. His eyes looked about the area, trying hard to distract himself from opening his mouth. When all else failed, and Erebus had said nothing to further distract him, he stepped forward while staring into the dark patch.

"Why does everyone fear Moros?" he asked boldly, without apology. "He only sees, not changes."

"Knowing it worse than not," Erebus grumbled quietly, though it was clearly the topic not the question that caused the tone change. "And that is often the downfall of immortals. We desire too much to know and ask the wrong questions. Something we have always chided the mortals for doing, and we ourselves are never punished for. Moros isn't feared, his knowledge is – and he learned a long time ago to keep it to himself unless asked. Cronus didn't go to Moros, he was _told_ a son would other throw him. He has regretted that for many years."

"So telling Rhea means something important?" Hermes questioned.

"Something _bad_," Erebus corrected. "Moros loves very few, as love would cause more pain to see it first. If this path is unchanged, something terrible will happen to someone he loves. It's the only reason he interferes."

"Nyx?" the messenger wondered out loud.

"Perhaps," the darkness sighed. "Though I cannot see how, I don't want his words to go unnoticed. I have already taken away my wife's ability to travel in the day, under shadows. But I need a favor of you in return."

Hermes lifted an eyebrow, not hiding his annoyance with his requirement to fulfill when the request was never his to begin with. Erebus noted it but said nothing, causing Hermes to nod with an audible sigh.

"I need you to tell her I did so," Erebus muttered.

"What!" Hermes replied instantly, his ability to think first clearly overshadowed by his outrage. "You want _me_ to tell _your_ wife what you did for _our_ cause?"

"It is a discussion I wish not to have," the primordial god sniffed.

"Neither do I!" the messenger huffed.

"HERMES!" the voice suddenly boomed, a blasted of shadows coming from the pit where his body lay. It looked like a ripple of darkness, emanating from the spot and cascading out into the forest. They hit the Olympian like a force of wind or sound, causing him to step back and brace himself, flinging his arms up in defense as if he were to be attacked. When no pain or force further irked him, he glanced to the spot to see the bright eyes staring him down, obviously angered. "I grant you swift passage and shelter in my domain without question! I have given you sanctuary in the darkest corners of this planet without any demand in return! You **will** carry this message or the darkness will no longer home your needs!"

The power of his voice almost matched Zeus' when enraged and the Olympian flinched at several words. Nodding without question, he saluted the hidden body and turned to leave immediately, facing the west where the night was swiftly approaching. As Erebus watched the messenger god lifted from the ground and take off into the air, he lowly laughed at his accomplishment to avoid argument and melted into the darkness, satisfied to know he still had his ways.

The sun was swiftly setting in front of Hermes as he attempted to hasten the night by heading west. His heart was racing at the idea of facing the person that started all this and had quickly become their enemy. He had no way of knowing how to call her, where to look or even what to say when she was bound to shout and curse him to pieces. He briefly thought about shouting the message into the night, hoping she heard it and taking off, but the image of him being engulf by her and strangled settled that idea quickly. Sighing to himself, he scanned the perimeters of the town below him and landed easily in an alley, choosing the quaint area in hopes of limiting an attack by Nyx. He reached a hand out onto the brick wall and looked around him, making sure no one had seen his strange presence before slipping out into the open.

The mortals were thinning out because of dusk, hurrying to their homes for dinner or running off elsewhere to finish work they had left off until now. A few children chasing each other ran in front of him, the one in the back glancing up at him with a strange look before realizing they had been left behind. Yelling out, she ignored the visitor and attempted to catch up to her friends. He grinned slightly as she disappeared behind a corner and he moved through the streets looking for a good, open area to call open the angry goddess.

Sighing to himself, he wandered into the local cemetery where the area was open enough to be safe and yet void of all other beings – at least, he thought. As he passed by a large, over decorated grave he finally noticed the bent men who sat still and silent in front of a grave. Hermes squinted at first before stepping forward, his closer proximity to the grieving man allowing him to hear the quiet sobs and whispers.

"I'm so sorry," he moaned painfully, putting a hand out on the cold gravestone. His fingers and palm landed directly over the last name, but the first was quite obviously a woman's. As Hermes' eyes followed to the smaller stone to the right of hers, he saw the single date and the similar last name.

"Died in childbirth?" the god asked quietly, attempting empathy in the solemn situation. The man held his breath for a moment when Hermes spoke, holding in the sobs as if to compose himself, but he burst forward again in a louder one as he nodded.

"They are with God now," he gurgled through the sob, his shoulder blades tensing up for a moment as he took in a slow, deep breath. Somehow, Hermes noted, that comforted him – which caused a flicker of a grin to know that Hades was very little, if any, real comfort for the dead. "And I will join them soon."

Those words rang heavier upon the god as he realized how true they were; the man's intentions were moot, for as far as Hermes knew, this town would be destroy like many others on this planet. His mouth frowned fervently as he battled with himself in telling the man the reality of the afterlife, the presence of Olympus and the complexity of the situation at hand. In the end, all he could manage was placing a hand on the mortal's shoulder for comfort and silently staring down at the grave. After a few minutes of this, the mortal finally seemed to realize he did not know the empathetic man at his side and stood up, his frown stitched into a permanent frown.

"Who are you?" he questioned suspiciously, eyeing someone he had never noticed before in the town.

"Just a messenger," Hermes retorted quickly with a shrug. The words had become second nature for him as he was asked this often.

"Who are you looking for?" the man sniffed through his stuffed nose, suddenly attempting to appear rough and callous despite his red nose and still wet cheeks.

"That is confidential," the messenger grinned slightly. He rewarded curiosity in mortals often when directed towards him, he enjoyed infuriating them for it. He was successful in that the mortal glared at him, looking him up and down for some outward sign of suspicion or threat and further irked when there was none. He huffed and mumbled something under his breath as he adjusted his shirt and walked passed Hermes, giving off one more threatening look before heading home. The god simply smiled at the mortal and watched him leave, waiting in the same spot before turning around to note the night that was almost near. The sun was just over the horizon, causing the sky to burn a beautiful array of reds, oranges and yellows that melded into the deep blue high above. He passed the time by wandering the graveyard, looking upon the dates and names of those passed and wondering how painful each death had been. Though he had always understood the concept of losing someone, he had never truly experienced the fear of death. Passing mortal lovers always took a toll on him or any immortal, but they took that pain on willingly. Losing someone suddenly or not knowing when you would – or the idea of yourself being taken from the world before someone you loved – these were all strange to him, though less foreign now than ever. He touched the top the stone the widower had been hunched over and Hermes frowned, attempting to imagine his pain.

"You have a message for me?"

Hermes jumped, his shoulder tensing as he spun around to face the commanding voice that appeared from behind him. His eyes widened as he laid his eyes upon a very tall woman, perhaps taller than Rhea. Her hair emphasized her height in its length, as it surpassed her feet and sprawled onto the ground around her. She wore a simple black veil-like dress over her body and her eyes were as black as the iris' he assumed to be present. She had a commanding presence and an authoritative stance, her shoulders back and her jaw raised, much like Hera when giving orders. Without needing to ask, Hermes knew he was standing before Nyx.

"I do," he nodded affirmatively, trying to gain composure over himself. He was rarely surprised by visitors, though he supposed of all those able to sneak up behind him, she would be one of the few. It was both interesting and unsettling to the god. "Olympus has sided with Gaia and will eradicate whatever harms her. We have spoken with Erebus and he has agreed to restrict your travel until this is complete." 

Though he inwardly braced himself for either a fight or screaming, Hermes made little movement to indicate anything after the words poured out. He stared at Nyx' dark eyes which seemed to flash a light as they opened wide for a moment, and then a sneer formed across her lips.

"You entreated my _husband_ on this?" she growled lowly, blatantly controlling herself over the matter. Hermes' jaw clenched as the small part of him that had hoped she already knew was crushed.

"We can't risk your interference –"

"**MY** interference?" she blurted out as she stepped forward and Hermes stepped back instinctively, not wishing the larger goddess to be any closer to him than she already was. An arm of hers flew into the air to emphasize her frustration, somewhat pointing to the god but mainly clenching and landing on her chest. "_I_ am protecting you from making the biggest mistake possible!"

Despite his determination to avoid an argument with her, his eyes flickered with interest in the statement. Squinting in the dark, he puffed his chest out a bit to seem less cowardly before asking anything of her.

"Which would be?" he mused, fishing for the information.

Glaring at him, she placed her hands on her hips before scolding, "You already know. You have everything at your fingertips to know this outcome and you _Olympians_ blindly ignore the real possibilities. I am going to protect my family, with or without Erebus' meddling."

"Even at the expense of your sister? Is she not family?" Hermes speculated, his face contorting in honest confusion.

"Gaia cannot die," Nyx mumbled. "Only suffer."

"Death is a release from suffering for mortals," Hermes countered, remaining calm as his eyes wandered over to the grave of the mother and one-day old child. "Letting someone suffer without an end is considerably worse."

"And easing one's suffering at the expense of many is selfish," Nyx responded calmly as well, her eyes wandering to the same grave. An eyebrow raised on her forward as she stepped forward towards, turning her body and revealing the pair of large black wings that adorned her back. Hermes stepped back, eyeing the wings she had passed through her family and then to the grave. She kneeled down before the woman's name in stone, still hovering quite a bit above it and placed a hand on the top. "There is no good end to this, Hermes."

"You've already spoken with Moros," the messenger god supposed quietly, feeling her sense of knowledge was beyond her own powers.

"Many times," she sighed, closing her eyes for a moment and bowing her head.

"You know that he's spoken to Rhea, then?" he tried to ask carefully, not wanting to evoke her anger again through unexpected knowledge.

"Yes," Nyx started as she stood up, letting out a small sigh as she lifting her hand to scratch at hairline, the wings begin her twitching and readjusting. "He hopes for another way."

"What has he said?" Hermes interjected quickly, trying to blurt out the question before he forgot to ask it.

"Knowing the outcome doesn't make it easier to handle," the dark goddess forewarned, her voice becoming heavy and somber, as if she knew from experience.

"But not telling us excludes us from your intentions," the messenger god insisted, his tone becoming more familiar with her as the conversation went on. "If we knew what you knew, we might change our decision."

"Then you made it for the wrong reasons," she reasoned quietly, like a disappointed mother.

"No," Hermes asserted, a sudden rush of authority and confidence surging through him. "We made the decision from what we know. This entire situation was brought by your inability to talk to us. Tell us what you know."

Nyx' dark eyes snapped in his direction and stared at him for a silent moment; Hermes could only imagine the many deaths she was wishing upon him. He refused to falter, standing tall and strong even in the face of the giant goddess. Her nose scrunched up as if her plan of intimidation had failed and she shifted her shoulders, causing the wings to jut out, shutter and return to their place close to her back.

"Hermes," she began rather softly. "Telling a child something is hot and will burn them doesn't stop them from trying. They will only believe they have the ability to avoid that. It enhances their curiosity." Hermes had to avoid grumbling, both in her use of a child to describe him and his own love of meddling. "Telling Zeus or any of you one single outcome won't alter anything. You will attempt to stay the course and somehow avoid that fate, thus leading closer towards it. It's a noble – but futile attempt."

"Then," he suddenly sighed, a hand rising to pinch the bridge between his eyes. "At least, tell me what we're risking."

Reaching a hand out to touch his cheek, Hermes nearly jumped at how cold her skin was to the touch. He flinched, as if pained by it and looked at her face, which did little to recognize his action. She smiled at him though the feeling of it was saddening and strange; her smile felt heavy and sad. As she leaned forward, her shoulders towering over him, her long black hair began to cascade down her arms and lay before her. It shifted in the darkness of the night and shined against the moonlight, seeming to glimmer like the stars in the sky. His eyes were briefly mesmerized by this phenomenon, only pulled by the words she softly uttered,

"Everything."


	32. Chapter 31: Dissent

The word of the freedom to destroy the mortal world had spread quickly, especially surprising without Hermes' help. Nearly all of the nature spirits, beings and gods had begun already, eager to help their kindred mother. Others were wary of the news, spreading rumors that this was instead a trick, a test of their resolve and Zeus would punish those that killed the mortals freely. The uneasiness was released slightly when Ares rounded out a team to descend upon the planet and rampantly kill those that stood in his way. Others still hesitated and whispered in the corners, wondering why there was no grand display from some of the other Olympians.

Hades had retired under the Earth, though this was no great shock. Aphrodite was nowhere to be seen nor Hephaestus; Dionysus openly rejected the idea, claiming order out of chaos was impalpable (admittedly he was drunk at the time he said such things). Hera stood firmly in supporting her husband's plan and refused to explain his actions, demanding unwavering loyalty regardless of popular opinion or doubt. Demeter had collected nymphs from all areas of the world and began to regrow the life on Earth, hoping to restore Gaia's strength and beauty while the mortal world collapsed around them. She refused to comment, openly suggesting they follow her lead rather than question Zeus'.

Most importantly, Zeus' lacking presence meant something to the immortal world. People were uneasy to hear the decree and see no action from him. Athena had noted the tension that his actions (or lack thereof) had caused and though not a general fan of making up for others' misgivings, she knew something needed to be done. As she left her room, she looked down to the breastplate she had not touched since awakening and rubbed the side of her thumb against the cool metal. The designs were simple, elegant and cordial, the fashion she enjoyed in battles. Though there was no purpose to an adorned breastplate, she had given into temptation early on and requested designs from Hephaestus (with the stipulation it was not overdone in which he was very successful). The helm was perched atop her head, precisely how many mortals in Greece had come to know her and she marched down the hall regally. As she turned the corner, she immediately noticed the twins that were awaiting her arrival.

Artemis was standing up strong and formal, dressed in the clothes she almost never wore. She almost always wore her bland tunic, but today was different; today, more was requested of her and though she had at first resisted, she had obliged. Her arms were covered in strong leather armguards with symbols etched in gold running down the center. The tunic was still on her body, tucked underneath a tight bodice of thick hide. It compressed her chest and restricted her motion, one of the many reasons she opted not to wear it, but the designs sewn and chiseled into it were fantastical. The forests and trees were everywhere upon it, mixed with gold, silver and green metals. Animals were keenly integrated into the bark and leaf designs, making it difficult to make out which was which. It was interrupted by the band from the quiver that stretched across her chest, leading one's eyes inevitably to the silver bow she held in her hand. It gleamed on its own, beautifully crafted and simple; she would have it no other way. There were barely marks of use on it, like she had received it only a few days ago and her thumb run up and down its smooth surface idly while she watched Athena approach.

Behind her was her blonde brother, who looked more spectacular than her; he had the golden breastplate that seemed to glow with the force of the sun, with designs of rays on it as well. The epaulettes looked like flames, emulating the heat the sun created and from them the cape draped over one arm. The battle dress had a white under layer with golden metal plates overlapping, all elaborately requested by Apollo and designed by Hephaestus. The greaves were no less magnificent than the rest of him, nor the armguards that were meticulously chiseled by the smith god. Even with his bow, quiver and helm in hand, Apollo looked the worst of the three of them: he was leaning against the wall, his mouth twisting in displeasure and his eyes staring beyond the physical state of the hallway.

Athena's nose twitched as she stopped before them and the two peered over to look at the sulking god. He did not notice their eyes or the silence until one of them cleared their throat, causing his bright eyes to look to them and his eyebrows to furrow when she saw the looks they gave him.

"What?" he snapped defensively. "I'm here. That's what you wanted."

"Your presence is demeaned by your lack of collaboration," Athena retorted calmly, only an eyebrow rising up in movement as she spoke.

"Because I don't agree with any of this," the sun god protested with a sigh, lifting his empty hand up to run it through his light colored hair. "It's rushed and extreme. There has to be another way."

Artemis turned to face her brother completely, the look of subtle anger and disappointment flooding her face. He sighed loudly as their eyes connected and shook his head, turning away from her. Athena could tell this had been a sore subject previously and their words had only perpetuated the frustration.

"If you wish to question father's decision, then do it to his face," the brunette huntress quipped, her patience in the situation wearing thin.

"This isn't about questioning his authority!" Apollo claimed, his volume rising up in self-defense.

"Then what is it?" Artemis probed, her nose crunching up as she leaned towards him, her eyes scanning his face as if the answer was written there. "Why do you find this so difficult?"

"Because I don't believe in it," he protested, turning away from her prying eyes. "I don't believe massacring millions is the answer to this."

"A massacre indicates injustice," Athena interjected suddenly, her eyes squinting at Apollo as the twins turned to face her. "To _wrongly_ kill a mass. But these same mortals have committed hubris in thinking they can control the wild, abuse the Earth in their own fashion with no consequences. They have taken Gaia's plenty as their own, shunning her health and live without remorse. This is not wrongful if we punish these deeds."

"All of them?" Apollo parried, stepping forward as if they would battle this out physically as well as with words. "Has every mortal done this knowingly?"

"Did Niobe's children need to die at the hands of their mother's hubris?" the war goddess questioned, causing Artemis to grin.

"That does not apply on a large scale," Apollo huffed, not completely jarred by the analogy. It was apparent he had become stubborn in his decision, causing Athena minor annoyance. Her lips contorted with her new epiphany, knowing that logic didn't always work on those too stubborn to listen.

"We have punished cities and countries for the fault of their leader," she tried to reason now, maneuvering less around attacking him personally and rather the gods as a whole. "We have destroyed entire cities for words. Perhaps if it were someone closer to you – such as Artemis – you would not find their hubris so miniscule."

"I don't judge hubris by its proximity to me," the sun god piped.

"Yes you do," Artemis nearly gasped, completely taken aback by her brother's ability to lie to himself and others when professing truth. "You never would have plagued that island village if they hadn't picked Demeter over you!"

"Okay, okay –" Apollo conceded briefly. "This is still a much grander scale than anything we or I have done before. I may step out of line from time to time, but I would _never_ insinuate killing them off completely. Even Dionysus disagrees with this!"

"While intoxicated," the huntress mumbled.

"Regardless," he muttered back.

"Perhaps your objection would be better suited later," Athena suggested suddenly, her eyes pulling from the empty wall to Apollo's eyes. "Fighting it now only angers those that agree or would be seen as a direct challenge to Zeus' rite. If or when you feel uncomfortable with it, you could make your stand."

"I'm uncomfortable now," he sighed, raising a hand up scratch the back of his neck.

"In the meantime," she continued, urging the three to push passed the current topic. "Our involvement here is less about the punishment and more of the appearance. We need to show the rest of Olympus that we council members agree, we are behind Zeus and we will carry out his wishes. The pomp –" she pointed out as she stepped forward, tapping his golden breastplate. "is to prove our conviction and union. So if you truly do care for order, you would _not_ side with Dionysus and tear this system apart. At least in their deaths, order will be maintained here on Olympus."

Apollo locked eyes with Athena's as she pointed out his flaw in siding with Dionysus and using him as an example. His jaw clenched, the muscles on the side flexing visibly, as he fought the urge to fight further and let her words settle on him first. Though he would not waver from believing he was right, he had come to the idea that Athena knew the course of action better. Slowly, as the jaw and arms relaxed, he nodded to further abstain from comments and Athena simply walked passed him. Artemis smiled up at her brother briefly before walking passed to follow and he, begrudgingly, did the same.


	33. Chapter 32: Wash It All Away

The Earth had descended into chaos. No amount of planning could have helped the mortals and nothing they were doing currently was aiding their devastating situation. All across the planet havoc was tearing into them in some form or another.

The storms had been the first sign. Dark, cumbersome clouds had begun collection over various countries in the world. At least one per continent had been spotted and the experts were baffled. Panic hadn't settled in yet for the clouds only threatened, but did not deliver. As they grew in size, spanning miles, states and countries, the uneasiness of the mortals had become more difficult to control. War broke out in the politically unstable Middle East, though who was fighting who had become blurred. Guns were firing, buildings exploding and panicked pacifists were attempting to flee without knowing which direction to run towards. The rest of the world, seeing the war as a threat to their own stability despite the major distance, jumped into action. Planes and helicopters were launched with hundreds of bodies to jump down and stop the slaughter, but the sky had different plans.

Timed perfectly, the clouds turned into storms within minutes. Thunder rocked the delicate helicopters and shook the walls of the airplanes. The rain began to fall before the lightning was seen, but it spanned miles from the sky to the ground and horizontally. One bolt seemed to follow from one plane to another, attacking and then jumping off towards the next one. The pattern was incomprehensible but no one could challenge it; the footage was undeniable. The grounds and oceans below became littered with air transportation. The radio signals back forth cried for help, but the more helicopters that were sent, the more damage was created. Helpless to reach the instability in the Middle East, countries were forced to turn to their own loss and ignore the war that was spreading into the surrounding continents.

For the coasts, islands and those unfortunate enough to have been traveling by sea, the oceans were pitiless and massively destructive. It had swallowed up all boats, submarines and ships entirely within a few days, causing an alert to reverberate throughout the planet: open water was not safe. Tsunamis, hurricanes and floods had become common within a few days. It rippled through into the larger lakes that began to flood and slam unusually large waves up against metropolitan buildings. One of the satellites captured the ocean flooding an island and, what looked to be, devouring it whole.

As if the natural disasters had not been enough, a plague had broken out in Australia and South America, sweeping quickly across the lands to take as efficiently as possible. The disease struck at the weakest first, children and the elderly, manipulating their lungs and ability to breathe. Within 48 hours, the lacking oxygen to their body caused multiple organ failure and death. The mortals were quick to call it the "Choking Plague" as it felt like you were drowning or choking the entire time and with no cure, they were powerless to isolate the infected due to the massive natural disasters and damage and thus the plague spread rapidly.

Athena hardly participated in the events, but rather watched and kept tally on them. Holding hostage an abandoned shrine to a hindu god, the goddess was overlooking a map of the planet and marking the areas that were most affect and most populated. From the north of her current abode flew in a brown owl carrying a small piece of paper tied to its foot. When the creature landed on her map, Athena sniffed at it, causing him to scoot back out of her way. She smiled slightly, keeping her eyes locked on the map but reaching her index finger out to rub his chest. He hooted affectionately, leaning in against her finger and closed his eyes, enjoying the moment. When she stopped, his large eyes flew open and he kicked his leg forward, revealing the note attached to him. She blinked, reaching her hands down to pull it off and open up the note, which read in messy hand writing: _No owls. Busy killing. _The goddess sighed loudly, mildly annoyed by the note, which she crumpled up in her hand and tossed over her shoulder.

"Nothing else?" she asked the owl who cocked his head to the right. When he shook his foot to test for another note, then the other one and nothing came up, he took off into the air above her, searching for somewhere to land for the night. She reached a hand up, scratching her forehead and wondered what else she had expected from Ares. Once given permission to destroy on sight, he had barely waited for them to blink before starting. She squinted at the map, noting his position and wondering exactly where he was going with it – and for a brief moment, she grinned at herself. She often had to be reminded that Ares didn't think, he just _did_ and his battles tearing through Saudi Arabia heading into Africa were mostly likely not apart of some brilliant plan, but just sheer force and will. Taking in a deep breath, she allowed herself to relax as she plummeted down onto the chair behind her and awaited the next round of news, which was fluttering in much faster than expected.

"Whoa –" Hermes exclaimed loudly as he dove through a window, narrowly missing the owl that had perched up on the edge. The feather creature screeched, causing Athena to wince and shout at him; he shivered, causing a few feathers to leak out and he took off into the other room. The messenger god slammed his feet onto the ground, putting his hands out to use the table to stop his momentum. He then lifted his hand, which was full of papers hastily written and plopped them on the table. "There."

"What's going on out there?" she wondered as her hands began to file through the papers. They had been notes on the events from Hermes or other watchers, or direct notes from the gods doing the work themselves. The first one the goddess was able to lay her eyes on was one from Demeter, which gave an account of the wildlife that was growing again. She wrote a small side comment about the weather conditions but the complaint was fleeting.

"Nothing good," Hermes quietly protested as he placed a hand on the windowsill's ledge and leaned on it, looking out on the beautiful mountain range before them. As Athena lifted the semi-wet letter from Poseidon, she grimaced before turning to Hermes, an eyebrow rising.

"You disagree with this too?" she asked, not bothering to mask her surprise. It wasn't often Hermes volunteered his opinion without it directly being asked of him.

"It just doesn't feel right," he confessed with a sigh, shaking his head as it dipped down and he stared at his hands. Athena barely hummed a response, unwilling to further probe his thoughts on the topic. She peeled back the note from Poseidon, scanning his rushed handwriting and she sighed, looking down at the map of the planet.

"He's heading north, now?" she wondered out loud, dragging her finger from the coast of Africa into Europe.

"Oh, he's everywhere," Hermes assured as he turned around, pointing to the coast of Italy. "He was already here by the time he finished writing that. I don't think I've ever seen him and Amphitrite so happy together. It's like destroying the mortals is bringing them closer together."

Athena grinned slightly, completely believing the notion to be possible. Separating the papers by who was destroying and who wasn't, the goddess filed through those that were attacking first. Hermes leaned forward, eyeing the papers despite already having read them on the flight over.

"Any trouble with Nyx?" the goddess proposed as a topic, trying to stop the god from continually looking over her shoulder.

"Not really," he shrugged, leaning back on the window to sit on it, putting a foot up on the table for balance. Athena briefly glanced at the foot but continued filing through the notes. "I think she's put her kids on mercy missions. Or Hypnos at least. He put an entire village to sleep before the hurricane hit. The Keres are following Ares' trail of blood, but the rest haven't been seen."

"Hmm," the war goddess barely replied as she squinted at a barely ledgeable note from Pan. She pulled it away from her face and closely, trying to discern what he possibly could have written.

"It says Gaia is getting stronger," Hermes idly revealed, his eyes wandering up to the ceiling as if to avoid seemingly like he had been staring at the note. Athena scrunched her nose, chiding him with a look before tossing it aside. "Is she speaking to him again?"

"Yes and no," he mused at first, grinning as he was going to play a guessing game with her. However, when she flashed him an annoyed look, he sighed and wandered against the wall, dragging his fingertips along the carved stone. "She thanked him for his efforts and has joined in the destruction."

"What?" Athena snapped, though she meant to sound more surprised than annoyed. "Did Zeus agree to that?"

"Not really," Hermes shrugged as he jumped up and started to float, inspecting the detail at the top of the wall that traced the room. "But he didn't deny it either."

"It's not a good idea to involve her," the goddess nearly mumbled as she pushed aside all of the papers to reveal the map. "Where is she attacking?"

"Everywhere," the messenger groaned, the conversation quickly boring him. He landed on the ground roughly, causing him to lean forward to maintain his balance before spinning around and ignoring Athena's judging look. He stepped forward, pointing to various places on the map. "Earthquake, 'quake, 'quake, aaaand 'quake."

Athena marked the spots he pointed to with a red pen before grabbing a stack of letters and started writing on them. Hermes groaned, which she ignored, and he started searching the room for her pet owl. He began to hoot, tempting it out from its hiding spot. Meanwhile, the goddess sent a warning to each god on the Earth that Gaia was retaliating of her own accord and then multiple personal ones to certain immortals. Turning around and following the hooting, Athena presented the notes to him and he begrudgingly took them.

"Ares won't read his, so tell him to be wary of Gaia until this is complete," she ordered promptly.

"Ah, well, that should be soon," Hermes tossed off easily as he stuffed the notes crassly into his bag.

"Their population still hovers at approximately about two billion," Athena noted skeptically.

"Right, but Zeus isn't planning on killing them all," the god explained with an eye half closed, wondering why Athena hadn't remembered (or heard) of this yet. There was a small pause where she stared at him and he blinked innocently, trying to read her face accurately. She glared at him, trying to coax him out of his joke and when he didn't laugh, her eyes grew thrice their size.

"What!" she exclaimed, turning her back to him and rushing back to the map. "Why didn't he say anything?"

"I don't know," Hermes said casually, his mouth twisting as he suddenly realized there hadn't been a formal declaration. Just as he came to the realization that perhaps it had been his job to tell everyone, Athena spun around to face him once again and his eyes were wide with panic. "He didn't tell me to-"

"Messenger!" she barked, pointing to his bag. "That's your JOB!"

"Okay, okay - I'm going!" he attempted to soothe her and side stepped her, kicking off to jump into the air and take off. He turned away from her and flew out the window quickly, avoiding any further repercussions. The brown owl came flying out due to the commotion and, about ready to land on Athena's shoulder, she pointed after the god.

"Follow him," she grumbled and turned away as he flew off. She marched back to the map, sighing quietly as she started to roll it up and pack up her belongings. She muttered inaudibly under her breath as she organized her previous mess. After she had most of it put away within a few seconds and was left with looking at the pile of notes handed back to her. She pushed a few aside, trying to decipher who needed to know this new information first. She narrowed it down to two different gods, the least likely to listen to reason and halt their assaults. Tapping the one she chose, she scooped them up into her bag and stepped out of the window.

"My Lord!" the Nereid cried out, coming upon the grinning king of the seas. The god barely looked back, only his blue hued eyes moving as he intensely kept his body firm and his hand clenched upon the trident. He was standing atop the water in the Mediterranean sea near the coast Egypt where the great waves were assembling for attack. He stood directly before the mouth of the Nile River, looking upon his greatest entrance into the continent. The river's natural flow was contrary to his plan, giving him all the more eagerness and satisfaction in reversing it for his own need. The country had retreated from the shore line, leaving his waves only to destroy empty buildings and stockyards. As he adjusted his shoulder, a waving mimicking him and crashing up against him, the Nereid was caught in the clash and burst into the waves, disappearing momentarily. Her form reassembled quickly in the same position she had been before and her nose scrunched up in annoyance, but without the ability to say much, she was forced to let it go. Poseidon only grinned further.

"There is a ship approaching," she continued, her tone indicating the mild annoyance she still harbored. The god huffed, laughing slightly as he lifted a hand to wave it off. The Nereid looked over her shoulder at the fast approaching ship and shook her head, turning back to her lord. "An _ancient Greek_ ship is fast approaching, sir."

Suddenly, the god flinched. His eyebrows furrowed in confusion as he turned his eyes down towards the Nereid who smiled briefly up at him, then looked over his shoulder behind them. He hummed to himself, finding the sight mildly interesting and he turned to face it, putting a hand on his hip. The other, still firmly gripping the trident, made a motion towards the ship and a wave formed behind him. The Nereid was washed up into the wave, her groan disappearing among the crashing waves. She would have moved in with them, if Poseidon hadn't laughed and called out,

"Report."

She swirled amongst his feet, trying to recreate herself in the mess of the waves and she managed to grip the bottom of the trident, giving herself enough stability to form. Frowning up at him, giving him a childish pout before pointing out to the ship.

"It's old, wrecked from centuries ago," she noted loudly, trying to be heard clearly. "It's rotting but somehow able to float and sail."

"Hmm," he replied nonchalantly, obviously not taking the mystery of the ship as seriously as she did. Nodding, he reached a hand down to pat her head. "Clever."

She started to smile when he touched her head, but when he spoke, she realized he was not talking about her. In a prompt huff, she burst into water and disappeared for good, sinking deep into the depths to get away from the mess above. He laughed quietly to himself, stepping forward on the surface of the water and marching towards the sailing ship. Each wave carried him gently forward and he continued to press the trident forward, striking at the ship with powerful waves. Though it was jarred, set aback or pushed to the side, the trireme pushed toward with great stubbornness. When the style of the ship was revealed to Poseidon as he neared it, he began to laugh under his breath. It quickly took more strength simultaneously halting the waves around him and the Greek ship. He let go of his the trident, which was held in position by the water and he clapped his hands together, awarding it a high honor for the moment.

"Well played, Athena," he called out loudly, his voice carrying over the water to be heard. When her name was called, the goddess stepped forward to place her foot on the edge, a hand on the bow for balance and she briefly smiled.

"I thought you might appreciate its significance," she called out back to him.

"Of course," he chuckled, shaking his head at her audacity. Even the centuries of peace between them hadn't eased the tension over Athens or their general rivalry. Though more so now it had become a fond joke between them, it didn't stop Poseidon from _accidentally_ rubbing his trident up against the worn symbol of Athens on the side of the trireme as he ascended. The goddess stepped backwards, giving him some space to board the deck and he did so quite messily, splashing all kinds of water at his feet. "Couldn't just send another message?"

"My last seven were not taken seriously," she addressed casually, letting her eyes briefly wander to the scene around them before looking back at his wet form. "I had no reason to believe yet another one would either."

"Good call," he mused as a foot landed on the edge of the deck and his elbow rested on his thigh. "So what's the important news?"

"You have to pull back some of your assaults," Athena announced formally, stiffening her back as she did so, as if preparing for a fight. As the sea god opened his mouth to counter her, she spoke up louder enough to give him pause. "Zeus had not planned complete elimination. That was just not effectively communicated."

"Too bad," the sea god snapped suddenly, his eyes narrowing so that only the bright blue centers were clearly visible. Athena, though in appearance calm, was slightly disconcerted by his quick change in tone. It was his turn to talk over her; as her lips parted, his voice boomed first, "My seas have suffered enough! They use the waters freely for travel and food, then dump their filth in it!"

"This is not for your personal vengeance," Athena countered quickly, slipping her voice in there when he paused for a breath. He growled, perhaps a few words were shoved in there and as he stepped forward to bully her into submission, she stepped forward and countered a glare.

"You are in _my_ territory," he warned lowly, letting a wave bump up against the left side of the trireme to emphasize his point. She braced herself in time to avoid grabbing onto anything and she took in a breath stubbornly.

"That does not change the authority of my statement," she pointed out quickly, refusing to turn away his eye contact. As she started to continue, her words were lost in the groan of the ship and the rumbling of the planks beneath their feet. She was forced to break the connection between them, looking down at the deck that was quickly splitting. The benches designed for the troops to steer were rocking every which way until one at the far end of the ship behind Poseidon fell beneath the deck. The mast began to sway, bowing only to the wind, which aided its pull from the ship's hold on it and cracked at the wood base around it. Most of the oars had already fallen into the ocean, creating a waving of sounds that, if one closed their eyes, sounded like a mute crew jumping off.

Within a few seconds, Athena locked eyes with Poseidon and quickly came to the realization of what was happening. A grin crept over his face that she had recognized countless times; he was issuing her a challenge and she was unable to decline. Having barely the time to even glare at the god, Athena jumped onto the edge of the ship were the firmest wood still held strong. She ran in the opposite direction of the sea god, where one of the few large decorative shields was still attached to the ship. Grabbing the top of it, she kicked the bottom where it was connected to the rotting wood and it quickly gave in to her brute force. The laugh of Poseidon was heard at the other end, but was quickly joined by another laugh. Athena's nose scrunched up as she recognized it as Amphitrite's; in the center of the ship, a burst of water sprang forth like a spring from the ground. The break through into the open air caused Amphitrite's laugh to grow louder and as the water descended onto the deck, it seemed to bounce back up into her form. Her hand was raised in the air and Poseidon, stepping forward to take her watery hand before it fully formed, wrapped his arm around her waist as they embraced on the delicate ship. When the water form finally materialized, Amphitrite pushed herself onto her toes to reach her lips to her husbands and they kissed as the ship was destroyed around them. Athena, having little time left on the imploding boat, jumped off towards the water with the shield underneath her feet, calling out to the goddess who had helped her get there.

"Iris!"

As the shield slammed onto the top of the water, it was unable to support her weight and she plummeted underneath the waves. She reached her hand up towards the sky, leaving about half of her hand still exposed to air when she was finished sinking and it had been just enough for the blonde goddess to see. The tips of her fingers clenched around the wrist as Iris' hand dipped down into the water and grabbed Athena's forearm; thankfully, the rainbow had enough force to pull her out of the water, as the goddess herself did not have that strength herself. The momentum had been enough to pull Athena onto it and they flew off quickly, leaving the sound of the trireme cracking and breaking apart from the water behind them.

"Didn't go so well?" the pale goddess quietly asked, a small smile crossing her lips though it disappeared when she looked back at the ripples where the ship once sat.

"Mmm, could have been worse," Athena calmly explained, tossing the shield off her arm into the ocean and then shaking her head, trying to dry her hair off quicker. As if realizing suddenly what happened, she opened the bag that was attached to her hip and groaned when seeing them soaked. She cocked her head backwards, sighing to the sky before rubbing her eyelids.

"Where to?" Iris requested while turning the rainbow north towards Mount Olympus. Athena gestured behind them back towards the ship, causing Iris to give the goddess a confused look.

"Back," the goddess ordered more sternly. "I need to keep an eye on them."

"But they attacked you –" the rainbow goddess tried to figure out Athena's attention, though she had already turned back.

"That's irrelevant," Athena retorted with an eyebrow raised to the pale goddess, unwilling to explain the strange relationship she and Poseidon had grown over the years. "They are angry for the mortals' deeds to their oceans. We are lucky they have waited this long to retaliate."

Iris bowed her head when the tone in Athena's voice seemed annoyed and their trip to the shoreline was silent from there on. The blonde goddess gently set Athena to the ground and smiled at her, nodding before taking off into the distance once again. The war goddess stepped closer to the abandoned mortal city off the coast, ignoring the crashing and threatening waves behind her as she searched for a tall building to set up camp to survey Poseidon and Amphitrite's next show.


	34. Chapter 33: Of Love and War

**Author's Note: **So! I've been debating whether or not to answer reviews here, as I originally thought it interrupted the flow of the story – which is probably does, but ah well. I just wanted to thank everyone for reading, continuing to read and review. It does help me out a lot to know that everything's still making sense and flowing, because sometimes what's in my head doesn't always translate well onto paper. :) On that note, Dionysus refused to aide them and Apollo begrudgingly did. I do have a side story for Hermes boiling in my head, but I've been so focused on this one so far. It'll come soon! But thanks again! ;)

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As wisdom, intelligence and philosophy had come to take over mortals and immortals alike, the word instinct had become like filth, bass and degrading. The idea of caving into animalistic impulses was disgusting in their minds and one had to be above that nonsense. Many had come to attribute the earlier gods with instinct, like Cronus, who had the desire to quiet his children but not the know-how. Uranus had suffered due to his instinctual desire to lie atop Gaia relentlessly. By these examples, it was no surprise that the Olympians had come to turn their noses to raw intuition. Zeus had elaborately created the council and their laws to prevent a repeat of power hungry monsters (despite the flaw that he had the ultimate decision). But not everyone turned on their gut instinct – most especially not Ares.

There were many things in life that Ares didn't think about. Now, that wasn't to say he was less intelligent than his family or plain stupid, as many had come to assume. It was no secret that he could never defeat Athena in a battle of wits, but almost anyone looked stupid compared to her. Ares' lifestyle was all based on this instinct and gut feeling that often got him into trouble but also won him many battles. The ferocious roar of a battle hungry god was disheartening and frightful, even when the odds were stacked against him. The sheer desire to destroy all in his path could make men turn tail and run, though that hardly saved them. Fear, Ares would argue if he had the tongue for it, was often more powerful than love, strength or wit. If the enemy felt fear, you had already won – in his opinion. Fear could drive people to kill one another, burn villages, rape, pillage – anything that seemed right in the moment of extreme passion.

Instinct, as many had noted over the years, had its tendencies and problems. Athena always hit the note of rape, which was often extremely difficult for Ares to justify. He just _felt_ it in the moment and was unable to quench the feeling until he released it '_appropriately'_. Of course he understood the idea that forcing a woman was horrible and he would rip apart anyone that would do that to _his_ women, but that thought never crossed his mind in the moment. In this topic, he had simply let mind go blank. It was easier to do without doubt than wonder about the ethics of it all.

Of course, one of the many downsides to this lifestyle was the inability to know when to stop. Ares was infamous for not having the foresight to know when the battle was over – usually, that was when Athena stepped in. But here, on this plagued planet where he had the permission to only halt in the face of absolute annihilation, his raw need to destroy was empowered and ruthless. When the decree was given, he had disappeared from Olympus with his entourage in tow, consisting of three of his children (with Aphrodite) and Nike.

Nike was the only temperate one of the group and the only one keeping moderate track on their progress from country to country. She was a white winged goddess with long flowing red hair that was never tied back, even when it aggravated her in flight. As she swooped over the battlefield in progress, dodging grenades, bullets and any other ammunition screaming in the air, she searched for the gods that had long mixed in with the mortals. The easiest to find was always Adrestia, for women were scarce on the field and she refused to alter her dress for the modern era. Grinning at the goddess who still swung a sword, the two briefly nodded to each other and then continued their paths. Nike was forced to glide on her back and descend when a rocket launcher had set off in her general direction. She scowled down at the men below and swooped to the right, heading to a different direction of the chaos below. After an hour of search, she had given up on finding Phobos and Deimos and instead focused on Ares, who was much easier to find.

Despite the disorder the fighting had crumbled into, there was still a pattern of bodies and the manner in which they fought that led directly to Ares. The god was at the front of the battle, screaming through new hordes of enemies and leading the deranged charge. Most of the mortals were facing the west as the fighting was turning its sights towards Africa. Though the red sea had cut them off on the coast of Saudi Arabia, Ares had simply turned north and followed it until they worked their way into Egypt. Nike spread her arms out wide, trying to reach forward and fly faster towards the front of the line. When she heard the mighty war cry, she had to dive down and flip over to head a few feet back to the blood stained war.

"Ares!" she shouted over the noise of wailing bombs and gunfire. She landed next to him, her eyes focused on his arm, which had been grazed by a bullet but not slowed him down a bit. He didn't respond at first as he stepped toward his prey and slammed the sword into his gut. Pushing up against the man's body, Ares grinned when he could feel the mortal's heart racing and he pressed the sword in further, letting his blood further stain the sword and his hand. He then took a step back, put his foot on the man's chest and kicked him off the sword, allowing him the proper space to turn and face Nike.

"What?" he grunted, his eyes barely physically noticing her presence as he was too busy looking at the carnage around him. She stepped to the side, trying to gain his eye contact at least for a little bit. When her eyes finally met his, she scrunched her nose up and he paused, staring at her for a moment before grabbing a gun from the holster of a the dead body at his feet and shooting the man approaching her from behind. Nike blinked, jumping slightly at the sound of the gun and turning to look at the newly dead body behind her.

"_What_?" he yelled this time, annoyed she was present but not joining in on the fighting. For Ares, anyone on the field and not fighting either needed to leave or die.

"I can't find Phobos or Deimos," she shouted to him while staring at the body, then turned to look at him as he punched an approaching civilian of the local area. She flinched as the mortal flew to the ground and Ares stomped on his knee. The man cried out in pain while reaching for the knife in his pocket. The war god swooped down on the man, as if falling on him, but had pulled his sword out to impale the mortal before his hand ever reached the handle.

"They're fine," Ares barked as he waved his hand in the air while pulling his sword from the mortal's chest. Even if the god had given himself a moment to think about it, he would not have feared for his children's sake, but he had simply misunderstood Nike's intentions: she feared more for the sake of the world around them if those two were to run rampant. Seeing she was not going to relay this concern to him, she jumped into the air and took off to continue her search. When the blur of white to his left was gone, Ares let out a loud war cry and swung his sword 180 degrees to slice at those preoccupied with others. He let out a loud laugh as he saw a few go down, holding their backs or sides and, pulling the sword up to his left, he ran forward to ram it into a soldier.

The sight of a man, only wearing a bullet proof vest and camouflage pants, wielding a sword, daggers and only using guns from dead bodies was not entirely over looked; however, many didn't have the time to say anything about it. If anyone started to stare at Ares, their life was gone in that hesitation. His lack of using guns had been attributed to time, as he had used nearly every gunpowder ammunition known to man when the days-long battle begun. But as he waged on, pushing the fight out of cities and into new ones, he had come to feel guns were cowardly and too quick. They didn't give the victor the time to _enjoy_ their success. Swords were personal, like an extension of your arm reaching into that mortal's chest to rip out their heart. If one could pause long enough, they would feel the heart beat through the metal. And the blood served as decoration, showing one's progress and conquests, which was lacking if one shot their target from yards away.

Between this outbreak and the scores of natural disasters surrounding them, the modern sense of communication was crippled. No one was able into the area from the outside and anyone daring to get close enough with a camera lost their lives in the process – Nike had made sure of that. No one was able in to understand why the fighting had started, where it was leading or who was pressing them forward. They simply knew if the fighting touched them, they were doomed. The other participating gods had certainly drawn attention, especially Nike and Adrestia who still wore their robes from ancient times, but the commotion was too much for this word to leak out and anyone dumb enough to have pause before them were dead before they could comprehend the wings or robes.

Not even the night served to pause Ares or his will for blood. The energy and rush he felt throughout each passing hour was enough to feed him for the days and if not much longer, then he would chose to ignore his own craving for hunger or sleep. The mortals were falling and replenishing faster than the day could persist, so nearly each one in the battle had only been fighting for a few hours. As his sword descended upon the neck of a mortal, Ares looked up to the night sky to see a white winged god flying over head. Growling, he kicked the mortal to the ground and shouted out ferociously before lashing out at anyone around him. Many mortals had naturally picked sides, fighting someone they thought to be their enemy while ignoring the leader of this chaos and his non-discrimination between sides. Slashing at the back of a leg, he spun around to finish him off, but as he spun, he was faced with his son, Eros, standing in his way. Ares let out a shout as he was not about to stop his sword in mid-swing and the winged god's eyes flew open wide, realizing this just in time to step back and avoid the tip against his chest. The sword continued its path and slammed into the mortal's back, causing him to cry out and fall to the ground. Playing it safe, Ares grabbed the mortal's gun and planted a bullet into his head before turning to Eros, scowling.

"What the _hell_ are you doing here?" he shouted to his son that had always favored his mother.

"Mom is in serious pain," Eros replied quietly at first, distracted by the blood and death around him and was forced to repeat it again, louder. Ares sniffed, his nose twitching as he let the information sink in only for a moment before he pushed his son out of the way and shot the approaching man from behind. The war god let out a yell at the falling body, challenging him to attack his family again though the mortal was clearly dead. Eros grimaced at the scene, barely accounting for the fact that his father was protecting him and turned, watching the gory around him and pulling back from splattering blood.

"Go home!" Ares barked, pushing his son's arm with his bloodied hand and pointing up.

"Didn't you hear me?" Eros finally yelled back, more noticeably angry about the blood on his arm than anything else. "She's weak! Hephaestus thinks she's dying!"

"She can't _die_," the god huffed, rubbing his sword on the clothes of a dead body.

"Dad, listen to me –" Eros started but it was too late; Ares had already jumped back into a crowd of bodies and disappeared among them, the only hints of his being were his loud battle cries and the rain of blood from above. Jumping up to escape the gore around him, Eros' wings spread out wide to fly him several yards above the violence. What he hadn't realized was that the war had taken to the skies as well and diving low to avoid ammunition, his eyes widened as the horrific truth that nowhere was safe at the moment. Knowing he had little time, he dove down to Ares once again and, more en guard this time around, successfully avoiding a close radius to his sword or surprising him. Ares growled something when his eyes first landed on Eros but he continued fighting without much pause. The winged god pulled an arrow from his quiver and readied it in his bow, aiming at a random soldier. Before he let go, Ares' hand flew out and slapped the arrow's tip causing Eros to let go and it slammed into the ground.

"What're you doing!" the war god bellowed, stepping towards Eros with his arms out wide. "I said go home!"

"She asked for you!" Eros snapped, his patience wearing in the moment but those words caught Ares' attention. He stared at Eros for a second, his mind obviously racing; there was a lot going on down here that was fueled entirely around his aura. He couldn't guarantee that leaving them to fight further would keep it going with the same tenacity it had before, but his thoughts had suddenly drifted from the field. There wasn't much that could pull him out of a battlefield, but Aphrodite specifically asking for him was definitely one of them. Following his instinct, he nodded and slammed his sword into a man's chest before stepping towards Eros.

"All right. Let's go."


	35. Chapter 34: Deja Vu

**Author's Note**: I have most certainly been on a writing spree lately - Hooray! With that said, things are definitely picking up here! Hope you enjoy. :)

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Hades hadn't quite voiced his opinion loud enough when it came to the destruction of mortals and was entirely regretting that inaction now. The underworld was flooding with souls that were confused and overwhelmed by the reality of life after death and those that ran the underworld were scrambling to keep them in one place. Charon was forced to accept late payment on the souls and ferry them across in an orderly fashion, something he had loudly complained was difficult for one man. Cerberus' barks were echoing off every corner of the place, causing a nonstop chorus of howls, growls and barking between the three heads. Judgment was causing the crowd to bottleneck and panic arose as the souls were realizing just what was going on. Hades was pulled every which way, unable to attend to any other needs but those of the panicking underworld and the millions of the souls that were descending upon them.

Persephone had been left to her own devices, unable to really help without Hades' direction and his only advice was to rest. She had attempted to argue with him but he had disappeared so quickly and since had been but a uncommon presence. She sighed loudly as she sat at the end of a very long table, poking the barely touched food with dismay. Even the servants that usually cluttered the halls for her praises were off working, busy trying to make up for their shortage of hands. The only goddess not called upon in this strict time of need was Hecate, who rounded the corner of the hallway to come upon Persephone alone at the table.

Hecate was a tall goddess, a few inches taller than Hades with long black hair to the small of her back. Long ago she had formed her hair into dreadlocks that started at her shoulders and they had simply grown wild then, causing her thick hair to clump and stand free in various places. It was mildly chaotic but she enjoyed its natural state of being. She wore a simple black robe as she decorated herself in other fashions, such as body marks (tattoos as the mortals called it), piercings and jewelry. She had several armbands of mortal writing throughout the centuries and black marks that crawled up her arms, down her back and legs. She had several chains around her neck, all with something different attached at the end; one had a tooth of a Minotaur, the other a small vial of a mystery liquid. The chains were all silver, matching the silver belt that cinched the dress to her waist and the silver dagger that hung at her side. Under the dress, above her knee was a small thigh holster that held a ceremonial dagger that was stained with years of blood. She approached the table with a small grin that was mirrored back to her by Persephone, who leaned forward suddenly much more animated.

"You're getting fat," the goddess snickered, causing the queen's nose to scrunch up while she smiled.

"Thanks," she sarcastically replied, placing a hand on her protruding stomach. "How's it going out there?"

Hecate shrugged as she took a seat in one of the chair and lifted her feet up onto the table, pushing the chair onto its back two legs. Beckoning an apple with two fingers, the witch goddess sniffed the air as the air jumped up and flew into her air before looking back to the brunette. She bit into the apple, creating a loud and echoing crunch sound as she did so before considering answering her.

"Busy," she barely replied and grinned when Persephone gave her an annoyed look. Putting her legs off the table and slamming the chair onto the ground, Hecate leaned forward and eyed her stomach as he put her hand out to touch it. "Want to know the sex?"

"No –" Persephone tried to cut her off, unable to push back in time and the goddess' hand landed on her stomach for just a second – but it was long enough. Hecate's purple eyes grew wide as she retracted her hand, her mouth opening slightly.

"Oh great," the pregnant goddess grumbled. "Now I have to know."

"No, no," the witch tried to defer the attention off her shock but biting in the apple again. "Nevermind."

"Tell me!" Persephone started to demand but her mouth opening wide turned into a yawn. She put her hand over her mouth, yawning casually before turning that same hand into a fist and slamming it onto the table. "Hecate! You can't do this to me!"

The witch goddess would have laughed loudly as she normally did in moments like these, but instead she simply grinned wryly and stood up, throwing the apple into the air and catching it again. Persephone, determined to get the information out of her, pushed the chair back and stared to stand, but she felt a rush overwhelm her and she plopped back down very ungracefully. Hecate, frowning suddenly, leaned down to inspect the queen's face.

"You're weak," she commented with a half questioning tone mingled in, trying to pry the information out of her quickly.

"Lately, yes," she moaned as her eyes closed tightly and a hand pressed on her temple. "I thought it was just a symptom of pregnancy, but I don't remember anyone else going through this much…"

"They don't. Not usually," Hecate muttered under her breath as she looked down to her collection of necklaces. Grabbing one of the vials filled with a brown powder, she uncapped it and poured a pinch onto a loaf of bread. "Here, this will ease your pain."

"I'm fine," Persephone protested, putting a hand out to push away the loaf. She would have put up more of a fight if she hadn't felt so exhausted. Unable to fight it, she yawned again, a hand covering her mouth as she attempted to glare at Hecate for judging her at the moment. The black haired goddess' eye twitched as she tried to decipher what Persephone was hiding from her.

"Did you tell Hades?" she asked quietly.

"Tell him what?" the goddess retorted slightly offended as she visibly fought a yawn. "That I'm _tired_?"

"You failed to tell him last time," Hecate warned lowly as she broke off a piece of the bread and offered it to the queen, who in return drew her nose up at it but took it all the same.

"I am not a weak thing that needs to be cared for," she protested vehemently, shaking the bread at Hecate in an attempt to make a point. "I don't need everyone around me to treat me like I'm some ...some fragile _child_ –"

Hecate put a hand up to stop her there and she obliged, tossing the bread down onto the table. The witch goddess sighed, reaching a hand up to scratch the top of her head between the dreads.

"You're not from the Underworld, Persephone," Hecate began to explain and had to put a hand up to stop the queen from protesting again. "There is a grand difference between those that originate here and those from Olympus. You misinterpret our concern for belittling."

"No," Persephone mumbled under her breath, sighing as she knew this conversation would lead them nowhere. She pushed herself from the table and used the table to pull herself into a standing position, shaking her head. "I know you mean well, but –" Forced to pause for another yawn, she shook her head and waved a hand in air, heading towards the doorway that lead to their rooms. "I need a nap."

Hecate didn't move as she watched the goddess slowly retire to her room. She stood at the table, frowning at the sight and waited for Persephone to disappear before pulling one of the bowls closer to her. She dumped out the fruit and poured in the water, mumbling lines in various mortal and immortal languages. Her other hand wiggles free a vial from her neck and as she set the water down, she began to sprinkle in the powder and use her free finger to spin the water counter clockwise. Mumbling more, she called out several names as her hands flew up and signaled 'stop' to the water – which is did. It stopped spinning and sat still as she hissed and demanded a face. The water shifted but remained black and empty. Frowning, she pushed the bowl away, stood up and headed out of the palace.

Hades had become rather grumpy as the days wore on. He had little time to spend in the palace, no time to see his wife and was pulled every which way for piling up issues. He had brought a bag of gold to Charon to quite his complaints, commissioned a larger boat that would not be done for another two days and stood at the gates to monitor the judgment and the souls for hours on end. His mouth had been placed into a semi-permanent frown due to the stress. Even Tartarus had felt the changes and groaned, threatening the very stability of the Underworld. Now standing at the entrance gates, he had his arms crossed and his eyes glaring into the pile of souls that his family from above was causally sending his way. For the better part of the day, the servants around him had learned to leave him alone; even Cerberus had quieted down his barking when given a nasty look.

The grumpy god was no less turned by the sight of Hecate and Daeira fast approaching - one might even think he was more angered due to the vivid frown that twitched on his lips. The smaller nymph at Hecate's side had never been on Hades' good side, despite her willingness to live in the Underworld for his wife's sake. She had certainly caused herself stress and change by it, her light hair turning dark, her skin paler than ever and her body weight dramatically dipping. But all the sacrifice she had made didn't fix her meddling or her insistent nature in telling him when Persephone was mad at him. He had come to think she _enjoyed_ it. Sighing audibly when they were within earshot, Daeira paused in her step while Hecate did not.

"You're needed at the palace," the witch goddess proclaimed as she neared him and placed her hands on her hips aggressively. Hades raised an eyebrow, knowing Hecate for a bossy and aggressive individual, but hardly in the mood for it.

"Oh?" he started with a bored tone in his voice. "Has the food gone bad?"

"_No_," Daeira grunted, missing the sarcasm in his voice. She promptly took a step behind Hecate when issued a glare for the response. Hades' eyes moved from the nymph to the ancient goddess, awaiting a more pleasant response.

"It's Persephone," she calmly explained while a hand rose to grab the same vial she had used earlier. Dangling it in front of Hades, his eyes lowered to view the powder. "She's fading again and Hypnos is no where down here. It's something else."

Hades flinched for a minute, staring at Hecate as he tried to decipher the words as quickly as possible. She was so utterly calm about it that he didn't believe her at first, but the powder in that vial was extremely rare. It was a ground harpy bone, which was nearly impossible to find as they rarely died and their bodies disintegrated quickly so to reform in the Underworld. Though Hades was unsure what the bone exactly did, he knew the witch would never use it casually. Nodding speaking nothing in return, he turned around and swept through the gate back towards the palace.

Snapping his fingers as he walked, the ground shook underneath their feet and cracked open, causing the four black horses and golden chariot to rise from underneath. The horses had to climb up, using their hoofs frantically to pull themselves from under the ground and each one fighting the other to get to steady ground first. By the time the chariot was completely out of the ground, the four horses were a few yards from the storming god; sprinting to catch up to him, the ran at his side until coming up to him and then darted to front, allowing him enough space to jump up onto the chariot and take the reins. Within seconds, he was miles from the gate and storming to the palace.

The chariot was too large to fit through the main doorway, though they did climb the grand staircase at his behest. He jumped off and waved the horses off; neighing simultaneously, they all turned and descended the stairs to return to their natural state among the cold stone beneath. The palace itself was remarkably empty, void of all those that normally would ask if he needed assistance or be scurrying around for work. Frowning, now realizing perhaps he had left his wife in a terrible atmosphere, he rushed through the main dining room into the wing of bedrooms. His concern overwhelmed his politeness as he burst through the door to her bedroom and she groaned, turning onto her other side in the bed.

"Go away," she mumbled through the blanket she had pulled up to her face. He mumbled something as he walked through the room, up to her bed and sat down next to her, placing a hand on her hip.

"Come on, let's eat," he softly replied, rubbing the spot on her hip slightly to encourage her to wake up.

"Not hungry," she groaned a bit louder but still waning into sleeping. Hades frowned and reached his hand up to grab her arm and started pulling her towards him. "What are you .."

"Persephone, wake up," he demanded more harshly this time, his worry starting to cause him annoyance. When she rolled onto her back, groaning, she was barely able to open her eyes to look at him. Her lips moved as if to say something but she was slipping into sleep too quickly to form any sensible words. Reaching his hands out to grasp her shoulders, she shook her to wake her up but all he received was another groan. "Persephone!" he yelled at her, his frustration coming out loudly. Everything was flashing back before his eyes and all he could do was imagine another two thousand years without her. He shook her again, "PERSEPHONE!"

Her name echoed loudly throughout the room but her face never flinched. She had fallen into a deep sleep with a peaceful look upon her face, one that ripped at Hades' chest. It was that neutrality in her features that he had endured for centuries, wondering if she would ever smile or glare at him again. He had come to wish even the worst of their relationship back again and would suffer her screaming at him for the next two thousand years over her silence and non-expressive face. He stared at her without saying a word, holding her shoulders still in hopes that holding her tightly would make her stir. All he could think about was how he had told her to wait for him in the palace, alone and she had done so without complaint. She had waited for him and suffered isolation before falling back to the bed. He thought about the regret he would feel for however long this lasted and slowly, over a period of time, his head dropped and his forehead touched the top of her large stomach. As hurtful as losing her had become, he had to deal with the idea that the child was suspended in sleep with her – if so, now he had lost two.

"My lord," a quiet voice came from behind.

"_What_?" he growled, turning his head to the side to barely catch the sight of Hecate and he growled, swallowing any other comment he might have made had it been anyone but her. "Wake her up!" he demanded suddenly as he turned to her and she seemed to glare at him at first, but immediately softened her eyes.

"You know I can't –"

"I don't care! Do it!" he asserted as he rose to his feet, turning to face her. She raised her head up a bit, staring down at him as she attempted to control her own temper. Shaking her head slightly, she reached a hand out to place it on his shoulder.

"This is beyond my powers –" she tried to explain.

"Then watch her," he snapped, pushing her hand off his shoulder and he stormed out of the room without another word. Hecate frowned, staring at the doorway over her shoulder for a few lingering minutes before turning to the sleeping goddess. As she collapsed onto the bed and sighed, Daeira snuck out from the other side of the bed, her eyes worried and her frown apparent.

"Why didn't you tell him?" she whimpered.

"It's foolish to burden him with my own troubles," Hecate whispered to the nymph as she leaned down to lay next to the queen on the bed.

"He cares about you too, you know," the nymph tried to point out but the witch was quickly falling. The pale nymph circled the bed as she pulled up an unused blanket from the edge of the bed and draped it over the sleeping pair. Sighing, she bowed her head letting her forehead rest on the bed itself and she sniffled quietly in the room.

Hades wasn't quite positive what he was hoping to accomplish, but all he knew was that Hecate was right. This had nothing to do with Hypnos. The circumstances were much different than before and even if the nebïaid could even fathom trying, he would not have been able to without Gaia or Rhea's help this time around. Assuming his rushed hypothesis was correct, he had stormed the deep caverns of the Underworld to the isolated lair of the Moirae. This time was different, he assured himself and thus assumed this time, they could help. As the walls tightened around his broad shoulders, Hades knew he was getting closer. The air was thinning, turning cold and the wind had vanished, leaving now only stale air. On a blatant mission, he had ignored the signs of change, those that would indicate anything was wrong or different for the Moirae. So when he came upon the open grotto, he was struck silent and motionless.

All the treads on the out skirts of the room were cut, ripped, burned or torn apart. They had lost their vivid color that had always been a sharp contrast to the darkness of their dwelling. Instead now they were a sad trail leading to the center of the pile where Atropos was clamoring about the room, muttering to herself and destroying the threads in any manner she could. She would cut a pile while chewing on another. She was frantic to get to those in time, to end the suffering and keep up with the astronomical death toll but it was near impossible to do so. Though many threads would disintegrate of their own accord, she was still desperate to keep up. Lachesis was left helping her find them, pulling threads out and handing them over, but she was much slower than her sister. She had darkening bags under her eyes, a weathered frown upon her face and her body could only move so quickly. Several times as she reached for one, Atropos grabbed it first or it unraveled between her fingers. Their situation was ill, but not near the state of their youngest: Clotho.

She was laying in the arms of their eldest brother, Moros, as she struggled to keep her eyes opened. She was the most pale of the three, her eyes sunken in deeply and her mouth cracked and dry. Her fingertips were moving in the motion of spinning thread, but nothing was actually there. Moros' lips were firmly planted on the top of her head, kissing her as he held her tightly and stared into the pile of thread around them. He looked no worse for wear than the last time Hades had seen him, which was around the time of the Titan war, but his frown told the tale of terrible grief. Behind him was their oldest brother and usual companion of Hades, Thanatos, staring down at the scene with no emotion wrought on his face. Hades grimaced, as if reminded him of how the death god would await a mortal's passing. Hades took a step forward, trying to catch his breath between his own burden and that which he had stormed upon. By the second step in, Moros' bright yellow eyes snapped in his direction and the god froze.

"What's happening to them?" Hades whispered, the walls echoing his words enough for all to hear.

"_In mortals, even gods are frail_," Moros sighed as he lifted his lips from his sister's head and rubbed the side of her arm. "I tried to warn you."

"What?" Hades blurted out before he could think. The prophecy words had come from the Moirae, but more accurately Atropos. The god's eyes lingered over her for a brief minute but returned to Moros when she was too busy to participate in the conversation. "What is happening to them?"

But Moros simply shook his head and closed his eyes, kissing the top of his sister's head once again. Slowly he began rocking back and forth, clutching his sister close against his chest as she let out a quiet sigh, trying to speak. Her eyes fluttered as she gripped a piece of his shirt and her lips parted, but no words came about. The other sisters were too busy with their work to notice or do much to help and Thanatos, cold and neutral, stood silently. Frowning at the scene and his lack of answers, Hades was left standing alone to stare upon the disturbing group and try to fit the pieces together himself. Turning his eyes to Thanatos, he waited for the god to turn to him before asking.

"Are they dying?"

At first Thanatos didn't move at all. His eyes simply stared at Hades who returned the blank look. Moros was the first to move, turning his head to look at his brother who, in turn, looked down to him. The communication wasn't visibly clear, but Hades could gather the answer was not a good one. Moros shook his head, sighing.

"I always make things worse," he criticized himself as the answer, giving no indication of what his brother should do. The largest nebïaid reached a hand out, placing it on his brother's shoulder but there was little comfort there. Thanatos looked to Hades once again, swallowing before speaking.

"There is no need for mortal fate without mortals," he simply stated, overwhelmingly lacking compassion for his sisters. Hades squinted at him, trying to decipher whether or not the god didn't care or was trying to hide it by doing his job.

"And this is … all of us?" he asked selfishly, finally trying to wean whether this was applicable to his family or not.

Thanatos slowly nodded, his voice low and grave, "Without mortal aspects, the mortal gods are not necessary."

"Mortal gods?" Hades repeated, his mouth frowning and his eyebrows furrowing. "That makes no sense …"

"It will," was all he replied as he kneeled down to Moros and Clotho, causing the Moirae sister to wince in pain. Moros pulled away from his brother, hissing at him in a foreign tongue and the larger god backed off, nodding politely. Hades stared at the pile of threads as his mind was racing trying to think of the implication. He took a step back, his eyes darting senselessly over the area as his face began to show signs of an epiphany; when he finally got it, his eyes snapped to Moros, who was looking directly at him and Hades turned around, running out of the grotto as fast as he could back to the Underworld.


	36. Chapter 35: All For You

**Author's Note:** I know this story has overall been dramatic, only with flares of comedy so it probably stands to reason I don't need to tell you things are getting serious. :) I hope you enjoy this chapter – it was certainly an interesting one to write. :)

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The trip up from the mortal world had been terribly silent between Eros and Ares. Though the two still shared a more kindred relationship than most immortals, Eros' close affiliation with his mother had left the two barely knowledgeable of the other. Ares was, to say the least, not pleased with a son of love who shot arrows out of compassion rather than rage and Eros, never having had any interest in fighting, felt no need for a paternal relationship. He kept calling him father by Ares' demands, but their sole uniting factor had and would always be Aphrodite. Upon reaching Olympus, Ares had finally stopped leading the way and turned to her son, reaching his bloodied arm out.

"Well, lead the way," he grumbled, as if annoyed by having led the charge up here to begin with. Eros skeptically eyed his father before stepping forward, looking around the palace and scratching the back of his neck.

"Well I don't know where she is _now_," he confessed as he looked back to his father who grunted and stormed passed him, muttering something under his breath. Eros' nose turned up, giving himself a second to pause and calm himself down before taking off into the air to follow his disgustingly decorated father.

The pair wandered the halls at first, taking the direct route to her room only to come up empty. Begrudgingly Ares had checked Hephaestus' room, but only after searching his own, of course. When it became noticeable that everyone's rooms were empty, the next step was to check where only everyone would be at the same time: the council chambers. Marching down the grandiose hall, the walls began to echo the words from the large room and it was clear they were heading in the right direction. The first clearest voice was the subject in question, Aphrodite, groaning in an unpleasant manner.

"Why can't you feel this?" she complained loudly, striking a hand against her chest as she leaned against Hephaestus for support. Upon entering the room, though said pair were what Ares locked eyes on, Eros saw a much more complicated scene: Zeus and Hera seemed to be standing alone against those that wanted the extinction stopped. Those that supported it were already on the Earth, following his orders and he was left to defend himself. Hera was weary, not standing as strong as she usually did, but instead kept her eyes locked on Aphrodite skeptically.

Ares, staring at the married couple, noticed Aphrodite's pain was written all over her face and body, though she looked still inherently beautiful even under such stress. Her eyes were beat red and glittering by the tears that flooded them, her cheeks a tinted red and the stains of old tears still shining through. She seemed more pale than usual and her limbs were weak, seeing as she couldn't stand long enough without the aid of her husband.

It was unclear how long this had been going on, but evidently long enough to gather a crowd. Dionysus and his daughter were standing by with Apollo at their side. Hermes was standing near Hestia who was trying to seem busy at the fire, while Psyche stood off to the side, the front of an accumulating crowd from the outside of the palace walls. She and Eros briefly exchanged smiles.

"My decision stands and you would do well to accept that," Zeus coldly stated, glaring at Aphrodite as he was growing more annoyed with her theatrics. She used Hephaestus, pushing off of him to stand up and he kept his hands out for a lingering few seconds, making sure she was steady. She took a bold step forward, which looked to take a lot more effort from her than usual and had to choke back a sob while she pounded her chest plate, causing it to turn bright red.

"This isn't just about them! I can feel _everything_!" she tried to explain but her words had never been articulate. She had often let her emotions flood her and hoped that would explain everything, but when it failed such as this, she was lost. All she knew was that since the attacks, she had felt a searing pain all throughout her body and was alone in this phenomenon. "They're dying and losing love in everything they had! I can't take this –"

"They should have thought of that!" Zeus roared, stepping forward to physically challenge the goddess but Hera stepped forward. She put a hand on his arm, scolding him silently and though he growled, he made no further aggressive moves. "I will **not** explain myself to _you_, Aphrodite. Their hubris is to be punished!"

Stricken with panic, stress and excessive pain, Aphrodite closed her eyes, brought her hands up to the sides of her face and shrieked as loud as her voice would let her. It did not have the same authority Zeus' did when he bellowed nor the roar that Ares had when he ran into battle, but it was ear-splitting and painful to hear, both at the sound but also the pain behind it. Eros flinched, feeling an excess of her pain with her and had to bite back saying anything to interrupt this argument. Hephaestus stepped forward, wrapping his arms around her and she briefly fought him but was out of strength. She simply leaned away from him, using his arms as a brace as she kept screaming until Zeus roared over her, shaking the palace with the thunder from above. She was overpowered vocally and finally stopped, collapsing in Hephaestus' arms and he kneeled down to show her pained state as the sobs came pouring out of her.

"Zeus!" Hera chided loudly and rushed forward to attend her, the only immortal in the room daring enough further challenge him at this point. Even Apollo had hesitated to help her, not wanting to incur Zeus' wrath for caving into what he perceived was a spectacle. Hera put her hands out on either side of Aphrodite's face, feeling the flush through her and briefly made eye contact with her son who held the goddess, who was slightly panicked.

"Don't feed this pathetic drama!" he ordered, meaning every word to be followed. When she looked over her shoulder, glaring at him and refused to respond, he let out a terrible roar that was accompanied by the sky. Hestia cowered behind Hermes and even Eros stepped behind his father. The thunder god reached out and grabbed his wife by the arm, pulling her from the fallen goddess and to her feet. Hera turned, unable to fight him off physically but still reached her free hand out to slap him across the face. Stunned, he released her on instinct and paused, his face washed of anger for a split second before turning to rage once again.

"Do you not see what's going on here? Can't you HEAR her?" Hera bellowed in her loudest possible voice and though anyone else might feel fear if directed at them, it was no match for Zeus'.

"**Emotional**!" he shouted, his arms throwing up into the air. "Ridiculous! Sensitive! You have always chided Aphrodite for these things and NOW you believe her?"

"She's in _pain_!" Hera shrieked in response as she lingered close to him, looking up but somehow still appearing powerful. "What don't you understand about that?"

"SHE'S EXAGGERATING!" he bellowed no different from before, but something behind his tone was different. As if he were standing on the edge of something, ready to jump should he dare and either Hera was there to jump with him, or push him over.

"AND WHAT IF YOU'RE WRONG?" she retaliated and, surprisingly, the sky backed her up. There was a thunderous roar that accompanied her this time and the pair were too focus on their own rage to hear it, the rest of the room did. She put her hands up by her face, her palms spread wide as she was clearly trying hard to maintain herself but failing.

"I'm not wrong!" Zeus snapped in his words and physically. He was done being questioned and done explaining himself to a group that had been too cowardly to make the decision themselves earlier. As if there were a switch to his capacity to think clearly, he reached a hand out, grabbing her wrist and pulled her in closer to him at first, but it was only to wind up and shove her away from him. The force was powerful and she stumbled backwards considerably, nearing Apollo who put his arms out to catch her. Without thinking, Zeus growled and stepped forward to attack, but he was assaulted from the side by a fist slamming into his jaw.

"Don't touch her!" Ares shouted with a surprising force when up against the roar of thunder and lightning. Eros gasped, stepping forward as if he stop his father but it was too late. The rest of the room knew what happened before Zeus did and they stared, mouths open and eyes wide as they could only imagine the next step from here. Hera pushed herself up from Apollo's grasp and started after them to stop this before it got worse, but the sun god quickly grabbed her and held her back.

"Let me go! Ares!" Hera screamed as she slapped at Apollo's arms, but his grasp held firm. Even if she had managed to butt into the fight, she would have only been collateral damage. The second Zeus' eyes landed on his bloodied son and he connected what happened, there was little anyone could do.

Zeus shouted fiercely as he ran forward, his arm extended out to close-line Ares in the neck, but the war god was fast. He ducked down and curled his hand into a fist, slamming it into the thunder god's side as he continued by through the momentum. Though it had been a sharp move, it didn't actually affect Zeus much and merely gave him a locale of his target so that he could slam his elbow downward without even glancing back. Ares was slammed forward as Zeus' elbow locked with the back of his head and he was momentarily blinded due to the force. He fell to his knee, his hands hit the ground to steady himself. Unfortunately he had paused long enough for Zeus to turn around and summon a lightning bolt, to which Hera screamed in horror. Aphrodite moaned and reached a hand forward, but she was too weak to do much of anything let alone break away from Hephaestus.

Scowling, Zeus only hesitated a second before releasing the bolt to his son's back. The sound of the crash filled the room and the blinding light caused most to turn their heads away. Zeus shielded his eyes with his forearm, trying to squint through the light from underneath but by the time he realized what happened, it was too late; Ares had rolled to his side fast enough to avoid the attack and had swung a leg around to kick at his father who was much larger and difficult to get off his feet. He slammed his shin into Zeus' knee, causing it to buckle and Ares locked his leg around it to help pull him to the ground. Momentarily caught off guard, the thunder god's knee slammed into the ground but he otherwise remained steady. Using the momentum of falling to the ground, he pointed a fist towards Ares' face and let them connect as he hit the ground. Ares grunted as the fist connected with the lower half of his jaw and he flinched, readjusting his jaw in the process. Zeus raised his hand again to continually punch the war god, but Ares raised his arm and let his forearm take the brunt of the attack. Zeus growled and grabbed Ares' wrist, pulling both of them up and lifting Ares off his feet.

The god, who was not accustomed to being manhandled as such, momentarily froze as he looked down to the ground and in those few seconds, he was slammed into a wall. He nearly let out a loud grunt as his back went numb, but he closed his eyes, clenched his jaw and tried to cancel out the pain. He was pulled away from the wall and slammed into it again like he weighed nothing, and his jaw remained shut. Fighting off giving Zeus any satisfaction, Ares kept utterly silent as he was thrust back and forth against the wall by the large god. There was a sudden pause as Zeus heard a strange sound come from Ares and he halted, breathing heavily at first and staring down his bloodied son; the war god coughed up, nearly spitting out blood onto Zeus before his lips curled up and he started laughing. It was low and slow at first, like he was trying to gain his breath in order to get momentum, but as Zeus was staring down the laughing god, he grew louder and louder. Snarling, the thunder god pulled Ares back and slammed him into the wall once again but it didn't stop it. He paused as the wind was knocked out of him but a he breathed in, he chuckled again. His ears were ringing as his body was rejecting the pain and all that was left of him was his guttural amusement until he was suddenly dropped to the ground. Grunting as his body fell like a limp corpse, he took in a short, sharp breath to let out a final, last snicker.

"What are you doing?" the sharp, controlled voice rang loud and clear and despite his terrible pain, Ares grinned when he realized Athena had come to his aid. She put her hands on her father's chest and pushed him away – although her own force didn't do much, he obliged her attempt and took a few steps back.

"He –"

"Nevermind," Athena snapped, looking down at the sight of Ares and back to her father. "It's all worthless now unless you listen – some of the Olympians are tied to the mortals. Their fates are intertwined and if you kill off all the mortals, you kill off the gods."

"…What?" Zeus replied in a daze, as if the fighting had rendered him incapable of functioning in reality. His eyebrows furrowed as he tried to connect the dots but he shook his head, unable to accept the principle. When the immediate danger seemed to pass, Apollo released Hera and she rushed to Ares, panicked at the sight of him even if most of the blood on him was not his. She pressed a hand on his forehead and leaned forward, kissing it as she whispered to him, "You're such an idiot."

"You're welcome," Ares replied with a laugh, spitting up his own blood onto the floor on his left.

"It's the Moirae," Hades explained as he stepped forward, accompanying Athena's attempt to placate the situation. "They're dying without mortals and the same will happen to us. _Is_ happening to us," he emphasized as he pointed to Aphrodite and then those surrounding. Dionysus was holding Khloé up, though he was not looking particularly well either and Psyche had fallen and was attempting to stand with Eros at her side.

"Impossible," Zeus stated as if still in his daze, half squinting and half glaring at those around him.

"Listen to me – Zeus –_ Father_," Athena reached out to place her hands on his face, trying to gain his attention for his eyes were wandering all over the place. She frowned as it was a slight struggle to pull his attention to her but when their eyes locked, he stopped fighting it. "This isn't about being right anymore. This is about saving your family."

"No," he growled as he pulled away from Athena. "This is about punishing the mortals and Nyx for their crimes."

"I don't see Nyx or her family being punished here," Athena snapped, trying to keep her words delicate after seeing the damage to Ares, but for once, time was not in abundance for them and it was wearing on her. "I see you destroying your son and everyone else dying around you!"

"Zeus," Hades interrupted, his demeanor surprisingly calmer than Athena as he motioned for his brother to follow him into the hallway. Silently, the thunder god did so and the pair left the rest of the room rather stunned. When they were far enough away from the doorway for privacy, Hades turned around to face his youngest brother. "What were you thinking?"

"I wasn't," Zeus grumbled, rather easily opening up to Hades. "They were all questioning me and I felt it boiling up. Hera's was too but when she turned on me, I snapped. Then Ares stepped in –"

"You've got to control this," Hades chided quietly, being remarkably careful with his tone but strict nonetheless.

"I _was_," the thunder god pressed, groaning as he put an elbow on the wall and set his forehead in his hand.

"That didn't look controlled to me," his brother replied a bit louder this time, trying to press the point home. Zeus repositioned himself, sighing as he started to retort but Hades shook his head and started first. "Look, I know you need to keep face and Ares can be insufferable. But mother tolerated Cronus until he turned his curse onto his kids, the same as Ouranus. _A loving mother is not denied_ –"

"Don't quote it, damnit," Zeus growled, his hand curling into a fist and he recoiled it, nearly punching the wall. He took in a deep breath to calm himself down and lowered his arm, sniffing the air and grunting.

"Well you just gave Hera the perfect excuse to turn on you," Hades blatantly replied and it caught Zeus' attention. He seemed frozen for a moment by the words, letting the reality of the past few minutes sink in and slowly, he nodded. "She has it too, nearly as bad as you. But she loves you – somehow – and you've been riding that out for far too long. So calm yourself, think about what's going on and turn this blind rage on your enemies, _not_ your family."

Zeus closed his eyes as he took in a breath, nearly looking to be meditating. After a few silent seconds, he let go of his breath and his shoulder relaxed, having reached more calm and collected state. When he opened his eyes, he reached his arm out and pat Hades' shoulder, giving him a smile of thanks that he would never word. Hades nodded in reply and they both turned back to the council room, entering it to see very little had changed except that Apollo was attempting to care for Ares and Aphrodite simultaneously while Hestia hovered over Ares.

"Hestia," Zeus called out as he walked in her direction and she looked up at him, her eyes widening in a slight panic. She shifted, moving closer to Hera who refused to look at Zeus and simply kept her eyes on Ares. "Stoke the flames. Home is hope and comfort. We need to let every Olympian know that this isn't happening again and we need their strength."

The shy goddess flashed a smile and nodded to her brother, only briefly glancing to Hades before turning her palms to the sky and facing the hearth in the center of the room. As she raised her hands up, the flames roared with intensity and immediately heated the room. She closed her eyes, breathing slowly as she focused her attention on the flames elsewhere, all throughout the mountain kingdom and each one, like an obedient follower, grew and roared back.

"Hephaestus, take Aphrodite to Hestia. She will watch her," Zeus commanded and the smith god immediately obliged, lifting the groaning goddess easily into his arms and heading over to glowing flames.

"Hermes, call off the assault," Zeus ordered but as the messenger turned, Athena outstretched her hand.

"Wait," she injected to him and turned to her father. "Poseidon won't back off, I've already spoken with him. And I don't believe Gaia will either."

"No, she didn't agree with it to begin with," Hermes added with a nod.

"Gaia?" Zeus questioned with a hint of annoyance, his eyes flashing between the two, wondering why he had only heard of this now. Hermes gave an apologetic smile and the thunder god sighed. "All right. Apollo, go to your sister and the two of you find Demeter. We need her strength against Gaia."

Apollo stood to his feet and nodded curtly, a small smile appearing on his face as he was overwhelmed with the turnaround – as well as knowing he would be the one to tell his sister she was wrong. Exchanging glances with Athena, the war goddess barely flinched when his grin widened at her and though he knew it was inappropriate, he mouthed the words 'told you' before turning around and heading out. Athena sniffed, her nose briefly twitching. Zeus didn't see the exchange and turned to Ares, who was now sitting up on the ground with Hera behind him.

"Ares," he started and for the first time since the fight, Hera locked eyes with her husband. The war god noted the look and turned, patting his mother's hand that was firmly on his shoulder before he began to stand. No easy feat, the room was silent as Ares bit back any groans and complaints from the pain, which were tolerable after Apollo's touch. Adjusting his shoulders, he lifted his jaw as if ready for action immediately. He didn't hesitate to lock eyes with his father who, clenching his jaw, paused to collect himself. "Pull any immortals from the mortal civil wars."

Ares nodded at first but slowly he started to grin and as Zeus took in a deep breath, his son put out an empty hand. Zeus merely blinked at first, his eyes jumping between his son's smirk despite his loss and the offered hand, wondering where the trick was hiding. After a few silent seconds, Zeus out stretched his hand and the two connected, shaking firmly and the gods nodded to each other.

"Meet us in –" Zeus started but glanced to Athena for aid.

"In the Mediterranean sea," she affirmed Poseidon's location with a nod.

"I'm sure you'll know where," he added and Ares chuckled before turning and heading off.

"The rest of you," Zeus ordered as his eyes scanned those still around, his bright blue eyes even landing on Hera for a brief moment. "Come with me."


	37. Chapter 36: My Way

Sorry for the delay. :) I was on vacation.

* * *

The Olympians were already divided amongst the mortal world and home, many staying behind who did not know how to fight or were too weak to do so. Dionysus had forced Khloé to stay through his usual trickery and thus silenced her worry that he wasn't capable of fighting either. Eros had argued fiercely against Psyche's desire to come but in the end he was unable to stop her. Heracles had been called to action and he gladly joined in, but avoided the topic of his wife Hebe near Hera, knowing that her current state would only worry the goddess. And despite his desire to stay near his wife, Hephaestus had joined the trip down to the Earth while carrying a weapon he rarely used: his large war hammer.

As they all approached Egypt from the sky on various chariots, they touched down on soggy ground that clearly hailed Poseidon and Amphitrite's work. Hermes flew on ahead to assess how far ahead they had been tearing down the Nile while Hephaestus handed out the weapons he had grabbed in a rush. Zeus stepped off his wife's golden chariot, a gift he had given her when Hebe was married off and he walked near the edge of the Nile, staring off at the damage around them. Buildings were simply flattened, as if they had been made of paper or straw. Only a foundation was apparent for the city around them and he frowned slightly. Athena approached him slowly, eyeing her father carefully as she tried to assess his state of mind and being before speaking. When he turned his head to the left, noting her presence and said nothing, she simply nodded her head and stood next to him silently, staring off into the wake of the sea god with him.

Heracles, pulling a metal club from Hephaestus' pile, gave a mighty roar as he swung the sword over his head and grinned, enjoying the idea of fighting once again. It grabbed Zeus' attention who turned around and, noting everyone with weapons, stepped forward and put a hand out.

"Not now," he announced suddenly, causing a few confused glances. "All of you will find what mortals are left and protect them. I will deal with Poseidon."

Athena took a step forward to stand next to Zeus again and looked up at him, her look neither questioning nor affirming his ability to do so. The rest of the crowd simply knew to keep quiet and that any sense of challenge could send him into a furious fit once again. Hera turned to the crowd and nodded, motioning her hands in the opposite direction.

"You heard him," she called out. "Let's go."

Turning around, they started to follow Hermes who happened to be the front of the crowd but Athena quickly took his place. Hera glanced over her shoulder back at her husband, staring at him silently for a few seconds before she joined them. After a few feet of walking, Hades was the only one standing there still and though Zeus might have yelled at anyone else for insolence, he sent his brother a questioning look. The underworld king took a step forward to close in their conversation.

"Are you sure that's wise?" he asked quietly.

"You don't think I can do it?" Zeus grumbled stubbornly, finding only insult in his brother's question.

"Of course you can," Hades sighed in return, bringing a hand up to his head and scratching the side of his face. "But your usual strategy might not be the best way to approach this."

"He won't listen to anything else," the thunder god reasoned, casting his eyes down the Nile's path. Hades' hand moved to the back of his beck, rubbing it casually for a minute as he followed his brother's eyes down the watery wake.

"Just try," Hades pushed as he placed a hand on his brother's shoulder. The two exchanged a brief smile before Zeus nodded. "And get him on land."

Zeus grinned at the suggestion and nodded in affirmation, causing his brother to turn and catch up to the join the rest in their mission. The larger god turned to look down the path and sighed quietly as he started walking, wishing to give himself time to think before this inevitably turned into a disaster. As he tried to strategize everything in his head, thinking of any possible move his brother could make and that which he could counter with, his thoughts became more difficult to keep on task. Imagining the sea god beckoning a terrible creature from the depths of the oceans, his thoughts steered into his memories of the war with the titans when Poseidon had to struggle with Oceanus to assert his control. When he tried to think of the words he could use instead and what Poseidon may say to counter him, he had flashbacks of the many arguments they had endured and the varying topics. He grinned to himself when he remembered the argument they had over who had loved more mortals and the sea god claimed not every relationship reared a child (and Zeus ferociously disagreed). He even laughed out loud when he reminded himself how many times Poseidon had inappropriately laughed in council meetings or blamed his wife for his own deeds. These thoughts had occupied his mind long enough to leave him distracted and weaponless as he approached the odd hurricane in the center of Egypt, funneling down the Nile river. He was pulled from the pleasantry of their past when the wind blew him back a step and he paused, bracing himself and staring into the watery vacuum.

"Poseidon!" he called out loudly but his voice was absorbed by the prevailing winds around him. He cleared his throat as he prepared a second time to call upon his brother, but this time the clouds behind him were arriving to give him more strength. "POSEIDON!" he roared and the thunder joined in, rumbling loudly like a warning growl from above. The first to form before the reigning king of the skies was not his brother, however, but Amphitrite. A large lump of water ruptured out from the hurricane and slammed into the ground, creating a puddle before it formed upwards into a body. The hands were on her hips, a scowl on her face and her nose scrunched up; she had no desire to hide her annoyances.

"He's busy," she bitterly replied, her eyes looking over her shoulder briefly to the massive wings and water that was destroying everything around them.

"Step aside, Amphitrite," Zeus ordered, fighting all urges to take anything out on her directly. "He will answer me _now_."

The goddess opened her mouth to reply but she was warned not to by the looming cloud and thunder high above. Her eyes wandered upwards to see the darkness descending upon them as it looked like the black clouds would eat the sky whole. In a blink, her form was gone again, melted into the water that was carried by the winds back up into the hurricane. It didn't take long for Poseidon to be seen walking from the hurricane at the base, carrying his trident with his clothes and hair tossing around violently. He shook his head the closer he became to his brother, a frown firmly placed on his face.

"I won't stop, brother," Poseidon called out, the distance between them still enough for the winds to bury their voices if they weren't loud enough. "You always protected them at our expense – your _family_!"

"I am trying to save this family!" Zeus bellowed in reply as a bolt of lightning struck across the sky.

"Then let this finish out!" the sea god offered, waving his arm over the tunnel behind him that now danced in the same spot, waiting. "Let me clean out this world and we can make a new one!"

"You still stand down, Poseidon!" the thunder and god warned for the last time as the rumbling was directly above them. He, by nature of his ego and violent rage, refused to explain himself or his actions. By the nature of his work, he needed to know the gods would stop at his commands without an explanation and if they didn't, they were to be punished. Zeus had rarely had to use this force on his siblings because they respected his authority by seeing his strength and will from very early on. It was a serious offense of Poseidon's, both in the order of Olympus and for their kindred relationship. The sea god frowned at first, staring at his brother blankly before turning around and walking back to the hurricane. Even though he refused to attack his brother, his defiance was intolerable.

Zeus shouted loudly as he stormed forward, the sky erupting into a storm of bolts and thunderous rage. The clouds had covered the sky and had no boundaries for the power. Lightning bolts started striking the ground in a rain of blinding white lights, causing Poseidon to jump and take shelter in his massive creation. The winds suddenly picked up, even stronger than that of his brother's force, and tossed the hurricane about in various directions. As if Poseidon knew the winds would never allow him any upper hand, the waters that had climbed several stories in a funnel simply stopped spinning and fell to the ground like an ungainly cloud had released all its water at once. Zeus was forced into his eagle form when the water came screaming his way, threatening to flood the surrounding area. He took to the remnants of a mortal building, planting his claws on a firm section before forming back into his body. His eyes scanned the area around him, searching for any skin of his brother's whereabouts but was losing patience when he couldn't spot him.

In an effort to drive his brother out, Zeus raised his hands up to the sky and called upon the rain of lightning once more. The crack of lightning deafened the world for a second before the others came wailing through the sky. At first it sounded like a large room full of clapping as the bolts filtered down to the ground, but as the light turned up no shape and the bolts hit no form, the god began to scowl and become angry. His tightened his hands into fists and the bolts became more violent, searching more fervently. They slammed into the water that was flooding the ground and electrocuted the waters, sending sparks through the waves. The cracks and snaps of the violence bolts hitting the water were much louder now, whirling to the Earth in search of a victim. Zeus squinted into the waters, searching between flashes but instead saw the waters retreating. He frowned, knowing an attack was eminent and he neared the edge, searching for the direction it would come. The storm of lightning had even paused as he prepared for something to happen, but after a few lingering silent seconds, he wondered if his brother had fled. Just as he sighed, a stray lightning bolt screamed passed him from behind and clashed into something, creating a mix of a loud crash and a screaming woman. Zeus spun around to see Amphitrite falling to the ground and he reached out to grab her but wasn't close enough. He kneeled down at her collapsed body, his eyes wide with shock as he looked up to the sky. When he heard a step to his right, he turned to brace himself for Poseidon's attack and his breath was nearly lost when he saw it was his wife, Hera, instead.

"Go," she ordered quietly as she neared the goddess and kneeled down, placing a hand on her arm. "I'll take care of her."

Zeus stared at her briefly, looking down at she tended the goddess and he blatantly showed her his confusion. A thousand questions flooded his mind but he was losing time and he looked out onto the waters and nodded. As he jumped, his skin bursting into feathers and his arms forming to wings, he soared above the waters in search for the god. The dark, large eyes scanned the premises for two qualifying factors: land and Poseidon. Even with only inches of water around their ankles, it gave his brother too much of an advantage. The beak opened for a loud caw that echoed in the empty valley, his attempt to elicit a response. As he turned south, he saw the waves crashing into the buildings and Hades, pulling up the Earth as a wall to shield what few mortals were left. Zeus shrieked out in his eagle form, pulling the attention of Poseidon who grimaced before sending a large bullet of water out into the sky. Zeus dipped downward, avoiding the attack and dove directly for the sea god who braced the trident in his brother's direction. The two stood stuck to their paths, glaring at each other as Zeus came speeding down and, with Zeus only a few feet away, Poseidon threw the trident out of the way and took the blow. The two crashed into the water and Zeus, feeling the weight of wet feathers, transformed back into his form in time to take a punch straight to the jaw.

"I don't want to fight you!" Poseidon bellowed under the water as he spun his brother onto his back and grabbed his shirt. "But the mortals must pay!"

Zeus didn't make a motion to reply, knowing his voice would be lost in the waves and he simply kicked his knee onto Poseidon's shin. The sudden pain caused his brother to release him and he swam up to the surface, gasping for air as he broke through. The wall that Hades had built from the dirt and rock of the Earth was massive now, looming overhead of them and Zeus grinned. When Poseidon broke through the top he was carried by a wave to stand on the surface of the water and, briefly glaring at his brother, he motioned for another wave at the wall. This time, the smaller ones were retreated from the surface into a much bigger assault. The small waves carried Zeus with, something he simply allowed to happen and he let himself swim amongst the gathering waters. The sea god either did not notice or chose not to care, for he simply glared at the wall before him like it was a challenge. Raising his hands, the wave grew behind him just a few feet taller than the wall itself and with a commanding shout, it rushed forward. As the waters slammed forward, taking him with, he used the momentum to tackle his brother from behind who had been waiting for the water to pass by him. Shocked, Poseidon let out a cry as his brother's arms curled around his waist and the two went hurtling into the wall of dirt with the wave.

The pair ducked their heads as they slammed into the wall, though thankfully much of the water had taken that brunt before they did. It immediately became wet and heavy, melding into a pile of mud from the water. Zeus put all of his strength to pushing his brother down into the dirt, trying to suffocate out the water around him and replace it with dirt instead. Zeus looked up, trying to find where Hades was coming from for aid but when he felt a strange sensation in the ground, he looked down to see Poseidon covered in vines. Zeus jumped to his feet, releasing his brother who was already starting to fight them off with his hands but he was slower than their ability to erupt from the ground. When the thunder god turned to look about, it was then he noticed the goddess standing off to the side calling forth aid the Earth.

"Demeter?" Zeus blurted out in surprise and unfortunately it caught Poseidon's attention; he snapped his eyes in the direction his brother was look and Demeter, frowning when they locked eyes, clenched her fists. Around Poseidon's ankles came out roots from a tree and it wrapped around him. At first it just seemed like another, stronger manner to hold him down but he groaned as they tightened around him. Zeus took a step back, watching his brother seemingly being dragged down into the ground and Demeter walked forward, marching up to her brother's side.

"We need him to calm down," she noted, glancing over to Hades who was simply watching by this point as well. Zeus hummed something, frowning.

"This won't do it," he warned. "He needs to be defeated. This will only anger him more."

"The roots will drain him," Demeter pointed out as another, thicker root curled up around his neck. Poseidon let out a cry that sounded almost painful, but with too much rage to feel empathy. "Without access to water or any in his system, he won't be able to fight and he'll calm down. It's better than trying to destroy him."

"I wouldn't have destroyed him," Zeus chided, rolling his eyes.

"I'm sure you said the same to yourself about Ares," she retorted and caused Zeus to groan.

"Word travels fast, I see," he sniffed, trying to maintain a high ground in the conversation.

"When it concerns you beating up your –"

"It's Ares we're talking about," Zeus interrupted quickly but surprisingly calm. "He can take it."

Demeter sighed, shaking her head as she decided it wasn't worth arguing anymore. The two silently agreed to stop the conversation and turned their attentions to Poseidon, who was still struggling against her trap.

"Let me – go!" he shouted over his groans and grunts as the waters in the river stirred with his rage. His hand ripped at the vines, tearing them apart easily before he could focus on the roots. He grimaced as another one popped up and wrapped around his arm. Clenching his jaw, he took in a deep breath and suddenly sighed, staring down into the ground. Demeter and Zeus glanced at each other, believing him to have calmed down but as the goddess stepped forward, the sea god slammed his fist into the ground. She jumped on instinct, taking a step back and Zeus took a step forward protectively. Poseidon's fist raised again and slammed into the ground and he did this several times until Zeus muttered something and pulled Demeter out of the way. Within seconds, a burst of water had sprung forth from the ground and sprayed the roots around the god off. The thunder god raised a hand, calling forth a bolt but Demeter put a hand out, placing it on his forearm.

"No let me do this!" she shouted to him and before Zeus could deny her, she ran out into the spraying geyser. She slipped into the pit where he had been seconds ago that was now flooding with water and she frowned, not able to physically do much or see anything within the water. Stepping out of it carefully, she called out to the sea god several times before hearing a response from him.

"You agreed with this!" he shouted over the water and Demeter squinted into the rain that was pouring on top of them. He was drenched and red from the roots that had drained him, but he still looked serene and glowing. The harvest goddess couldn't help but frown at his tone and his mannerisms, as he was struggling with his desire to destroy the mortal world and his family trying to stop him. "They're killing her and they're killing my oceans!"

"We can fix that, but you need to stop!" she retorted as loud as she could and stepped forward, hoping their proximity would help. He turned, at first, to his left and looked away and she paused, not wanting to worsen the situation.

"They're not worth it, Demeter!" Poseidon hollered with aggravation, his hands coming up to his face as he pressed his temples with his palms. It was apparent that he was trying to calm himself, or at the very least try to understand what was going on, but his aggression was not fulfilled. He was bordering the rage that had slipped from Cronus to his children, the rage that blinded them from making the right decision or understanding what they were doing. They all carried that burden of his curse, tempting to release it but always knowing the consequences would be terrible. Though Demeter was not the worst of the sisters, she could recognize it easily and she bit her lower lip, hoping to end his tirade before he slipped into it and away from logic and reasoning. "They're hurting **us**!"

The goddess frowned and started walking towards him, empathetic to his reasoning and drive. She felt the compassion he had for the gods, which had quickly been turned into lack of compassion for mortals. She had never felt more or less connected to the mortals through worshipping, temples or simply prayers, but rather did connect with her family on Olympus. She knew the pain of seeing a family member hurt and knowing there was a simple way to stop it. Reaching her hands out as she neared him, she placed her hands on either side of his face and forced him to look her in the eyes, which were staring directly into his. She pressed her hands against his cheeks, trying to hold him still and bit back every temptation to say she agreed with him.

"Please," she urged, her voice sad and heavy sounding. "Please, do this for me."

"Don't –" he protested with a groan, closing his eyes for a minute to avoid looking into her own. He turned his head away slightly but her arms tensed up and he refused to fight her on it. He clenched his jaw and started to shake his head, fighting harder to avoid her newest attempt.

"Poseidon, _please_," she pressed again, stepping even closer to him and pushing her hands against his face. "Please just do it for me."

Finally opening his eyes, he placed a hand on her wrist and sighed, slowly nodding and he brought her in closer to him by a hand on her back. She blinked, looking down for a moment in confusion and he smiled, putting his arm over her head.

"You're soaked," he quietly joked as the geyser suddenly stopped. There were a few extra seconds where the water that had already been thrown into the air had to fall and they lingered a few seconds before in the make shift rain before it all fell to the ground and only they were left standing there. Demeter had to push herself away from the god and cleared her throat, looking over her shoulder at the gathering crowd of immortals.

Poseidon's eyebrows rose up on his forehead as he was surprised to see so many and those that normally stayed behind. His eyes lingered over Eros and Psyche before catching on his oldest brother Hades. He frowned as he vaguely remembered seeing him behind the wall but didn't connect the two together. If his brother were here to help, something was indeed terribly wrong. As they all began approaching the two drenched gods, Zeus stormed down first with an annoyed look on his face and fast approached Poseidon, causing Demeter to nearly step between them but she hesitated.

"That was foolish," Zeus started to threaten with a clenched jaw, but Hera had picked up her own pace to reach the scene on time and placed a hand on her husband's arm, glancing between the two of them.

"We can't afford any more arguments at this point," she quickly asserted, though keeping a low tone so not to be overheard. "We will deal with it later."

In keeping quiet, she had made sure no other gods had heard it and thus Zeus' pride was still in tact. Poseidon nodded to the both of them, though he smiled all the same, quite unafraid of whatever punishment his brother could dream of.

"We need to find Gaia," Athena announced casually, moving onto the next issue at hand rather quickly.

"I'm sure mother will gladly oblige," Hera muttered as she placed a hand on her hip, her tone indicating that Rhea _should_ rather than _would_.

"I would, my dear," came Rhea's voice and the group turned to look upon the tall goddess accompanied by two other titans. "But she is no longer fighting alone."


	38. Chapter 37: Makeshift

On Earth, the Olympians held a makeshift council. It was one of the few things that created order and comfort in this time of panic and confusion. They found a building far enough away from the Nile river that was untarnished by the waters and any other disaster the gods had unleashed upon them. It was emptied, abandoned by the mortals by either will or death and the gods used it as their own. They settled into the largest room available, which was rather small in comparison to the golden council room, but they made do. Ares had forced his group into a corner with him near the front and he crossed his arms, leaning on the corner of a wall while they grumbled behind him (Nike being the loudest complainer). Zeus and Hera sat unusually close to each other while the traditional Olympians sat around them: Dionysus, Hephaestus, Athena, Hermes, Apollo, Artemis, Demeter and Poseidon. Eros and Psyche sat in the usual spot of Aphrodite, Heracles stood next to Hermes and Rhea had her own corner with the two titans she had brought with her: Themis and Dike.

Themis was taller than her daughter Dike though it was difficult to see when they were sitting. The two were strangely similar looking in both features and dress, as if the past two thousand years had not affected them or they as well had slept through it. They wore their ceremonial white robes that were finely decorated with gold rope or black embroidery. Themis was more noticeable in dress by the gold shawl that draped over her right shoulder and Dike by the silver shawl that draped over her left. They both wore their black hair long and down behind their backs, but their eyes were staunchly different; Themis had piercing yellow eyes that reminded Hades of Moros and Dike had dark brown ones, giving her a more mortal appearance.

The two were some of the better known titans within the Olympian circle, as they had sided with them in the titanomachy and been active throughout the society since. Themis had proceeded over many trials of the gods, even sentencing of her own kind, but the one who had come to know her very well – besides Zeus – was Ares, who was scowling at her. Both her and Dike had been constant eyes on him and stepped in swiftly when he created problems in the immortal and mortal world alike. To him, they were like extra parents he didn't need (or want) and had come to truly hate. The rest of Olympus had no such quarrels with them, though their decision to step in was somewhat alarming.

Hera's eyes were scanning all of those that had come, lingering on a few. She had inspected Hephaestus for a few seconds, then Ares and his group and then suddenly Psyche. Her eyes narrowed as she stared at the goddess, trying to decipher what was different about her than before on Olympus but as both she and Eros looked to Hera, the bright eyes turned away to the titans instead. Rhea suddenly connected her eyes with her daughter; they simply stared at each other for a few lingering seconds before Hera broke away first, turning to her husband. Zeus glanced at her, receiving the signal they should started and he cleared his throat, giving way to silence.

"So, the titans are rising against us again?" Zeus opened with a question, turning to the three in the room that sat regally. Rhea frowned, turning to Themis who nodded but said nothing else.

"They … have been stirred by Gaia," Rhea began in an apologetic tone, as if her mother's actions were her own. "The Titans are unaffected by the mortal world and, in discovering the Olympians are, have decided to help her eradicate them in exchange for amnesty."

"_Most_ Titans are unaffected," Dike corrected quietly and it was in that moment that the rest of the room finally noticed her change in appearance; she was slightly hunched, with small bags under her eyes and she would pause when blinking, as if her eyes closed were entirely too comfortable. Her mother placed a hand on her leg, smiling briefly down at her before turning back to the group.

"Cronus is still in Tartarus, correct?" Demeter spoke up as she looked over at Hades who briefly looked offended before nodding.

"Gaia can still overturn Tartarus," Themis reasoned with a solemn tone, leaning back slightly in the chair that creaked under her weight. "She has much power over him."

"_Him_?" Psyche whispered to her husband who shrugged. Most of the younger gods had never heard of the darkest pit being referred to in an animated sense. Apollo and Artemis certainly were surprised, giving each other a look before turning to Athena who was not surprised or, at the very least, did not show it.

"Cronus is the last of it now," Hades mumbled with a sigh, scratching at his hairline as he imagined having to war with his own realm. "He will only rise in the event of our defeat."

"True," Themis affirmed with a nod.

"So which Titans have joined her?" Zeus asked as he ran through the list in his head that were in Tartarus.

"Phoebe, Selene, Helios –" Rhea started to name off but the rumbling of the crowd in the room silenced her. Artemis and Apollo were particularly worried about the latter two with whom they had close relations. Zeus frowned at the first name, suddenly regretting pardoning her and not throwing her into the depths of the pits as well.

"Aren't most of the titans in Tartarus?" Hermes questioned, confused as to why this was suddenly an issue.

"Many of the titan women did not fight," Hera articulated quickly, trying to stomp out any arguments or Zeus overly defending his past actions. "There was no need to punish those that did not side against us."

"But they're fighting us _now_," he asserted and consequently received a glare from Themis.

"They are defending their mother. A noble cause," the righteous titan explained with a finite tone, as if there were no room for argument.

"But not noble enough," Hermes grinned, as if he had anticipated her stepping in and saying those exact words. "Or else you wouldn't be here with us."

Ares and his clan snickered and chuckled, giving Hermes an unnecessary ego boost while various others sighed or shot him dirty looks. The titan herself had nearly narrowed her eyes at him, sitting silent on the matter. Poseidon couldn't help but crack a smile, but when Rhea cleared her throat, the room fell silent again.

"The mortals lived a wonderful life under Cronus' rule," Dike explained quietly, rubbing an eye and obviously fighting back a yawn. "But we immortals suffered greatly. He had no love of anything but himself and took much of his paranoia and madness out on us. No titan truly wishes to repeat his reign but when faced to side with those that imprisoned their husbands and family or their mother, I think the answer is quite easy."

"Who cares?" Ares shrugged as he used a dagger to clean out the dried blood under his fingernails. "They can whine and cry about their reasons when we beat them, but they're still fighting against us."

"Though he is quite callous about it," Athena started as she rolled her eyes away from Ares. "He is unfortunately right. Their intentions do not mask their actions. We must use this time to plan accordingly and find a way to either stop this war or defeat Gaia promptly."

"We will need a team to defend the mortals," Dike quickly suggested and fueled by her mother's nod. "Otherwise our offensive attacks will collapse by their deaths. We are uncertain exactly who and how many of us would be effected, but we can gather the number is large."

"No," Zeus shot down simply and Ares snickered. "We can't afford anyone. As long as we attack with all our strength, they will have no choice but to focus on us."

Athena flinched, obviously finding the plan difficult to follow-through with and she shifted to the edge of her seat, adjusting herself in preparation for an argument.

"It is unwise to throw all our strength into one area," she started off and immediately received a glare from the god. "It would only take one or two titans to seek out the remaining mortals and destroy them while we fight the rest, and those would be our undoing, not Gaia."

"But a few missing pieces could also break us completely," Nike spoke up from behind Ares, causing him to glare at her but she stood her ground. Though Athena seemed perturbed, she simply looked in her direction without much reaction. "There is no full victory here. Either we sacrifice more mortals and therefore ourselves, or ourselves completely in battle."

"I will watch who I can," Rhea offered with a smile. "There are many you aren't thinking of. Pan will not fight Gaia but perhaps he will protect. He and the nymphs can save who is left."

Athena's eyes narrowed suddenly while Rhea spoke and Hermes noticed first, opting not to say anything as he watched her eyes scan the area. She briefly connected with his own before scanning over his head and in the corners of the dark room. He started searching himself as Zeus declared Rhea's suggestion a good idea and the messenger god suddenly knew what had perturbed the war goddess; he could _feel_ Erebus. Unsure what the primordial god could further want from him or the group, Hermes shrunk into a slumped position and pretended not to see Athena's face. While Hera directed Poseidon to gather his forces to protect the mortals by river or lake, Athena slowly placed a hand on the handle of her dagger and finally, Ares noticed. He huffed, stepping out as he drew his sword and causing an uneasy silence among the group. The pair stalked the area for a few lingering in the silence and just as Dionysus started to groan, Athena pulled her dagger and pointed it into the dark hallway.

"What are you doing here?" she demanded and Zeus stood up, squinting to see what she could possibly be targeting.

"Erebus brought us here," a familiar voice replied calmly and a hand reached out of the darkness, setting upon her dagger and pushing it down. Though Athena tensed her arm up, she did not fight this as who stepped out was Philotes. Of all the children of Nyx, though she was one of the least well known, she was always one of the kindest and even Athena could not help but trust her. She had a round and friendly face that seemed to smile perpetually, long curly brown hair and enchanting blue eyes – all of which caused anyone to stare for a few seconds. Athena sniffed the air as she stepped back to allow the nebiaid through but as more pulled from the darkness behind her, Ares' sword swung to greet Nemesis' throat.

"Not you," he snarled as the hooded goddess paused in her step and, from behind, Eris jumped out to slash at his sword with her weaponed fist. Both actions resulted in an immediate blow out as each side jumped to the other's aid, with minor opposition trying to shout reason. Hera ordered Hephaestus in to pull back Ares, which was quite a feat in itself but she was searching for order. Athena slipped passed Philotes to jump into the heart of the group behind her and she slammed her shoulder into Eris, causing her to fall back upon her sister Apate, who let out a cry in the dark. Nemesis raised her armored forearm to take the brunt of Ares' sword and she grunted in the process, leaning back to go with the momentum. Philotes shouted out, trying to stop the fighting but neither side dared to look nor listen to her. In the cramped space, it was both a blessing and a disadvantage; no one was free to maneuver well so the fighting was minimal and slow, but it always prevented those able to stop the fight from getting there faster. Deimos and Photos only cheered and pushed against the others, making the shouting louder and the pushing worse. Nike was unable to take flight in the cramped space and simply sighed, standing against the wall and keeping safe.

As Hephaestus pushed through the crowd, he grabbed Deimos by the neck and tossed him over several gathering gods who ducked. Phobos turned in time to see his brother flying in the air and only realized what had happened when his feet too no longer touched the ground. Artemis was next, to whom the smith god was kinder and simply spun her around him and pushed her back. Philotes was able to sidestep the approaching god, unwilling to see how he would handle her if she remained in his way. Themis had made it to the fighting pair first and attempted to reason with Ares, but he was having none of it – until Hephaestus grabbed him from behind.

"LET GO!" the war god roared as his brother grabbed his own wrist and slammed his two hands into Ares' chest. From there, like a severe hug, he tightened his grip on his chest and restricted all motion. Nemesis immediately halted and placed her hands at her side, watching the struggling gods before her.

"You must listen," Hephaestus grumbled to his brother's back, threatening to clench tighter the more Ares struggled. Athena still struggled with Eris behind them, but as she turned to see what was happening, she quickly changed her strategy. Slamming her knee into Eris' stomach, the goddess buckled over and Athena grabbed the back of her neck, forcing her down to the ground. She then placed her knee on the goddess' spine and grabbed her arm to force her into submission and surrender.

"Enough," the war goddess ordered but as she leaned in to listen to Eris' reply, she was struck from the side by Apate who howled with laughter.

"Stop!" Nemesis ordered as she turned to her sister and the nebiaid immediately recoiled further into the darkness. Turning to Athena, her pale face was briefly seen under the hood before she turned back to Ares.

"They –" Ares tried to reply but with his lungs restricted, he had to breathe much slower.

"Just listen, brother," Hephaestus sighed calmly as he loosened his grip on his brother, tightening only for a second when Ares clenched up, both threatening to do it all over again.

"We came to help," Nemesis simply stated, causing a groan from Dionysus.

"Would have helped if you had said that first," the wine god replied, rolling his eyes at the consequential glares.

"Our mother still stands against you but also Gaia," Philotes stepped in loudly, trying to ease the tension by taking the brunt of the responsibility. "She sees no victory if you lose."

"We have no cause to trust her," Demeter snapped loudly, causing Poseidon's eyebrows to raise in surprise.

"The conditions have changed," Nemesis stated simply.

"How so?" Hera questioned, her nose curling up as she tried to be the calm one between herself and her sister. "Why would she offer aid now when she has been our enemy this entire time?"

"Because her children are also dying," Hades gravely replied before any of the nebiaids could lie for her. Zeus looked to his brother, as well as the rest of the room with blatantly confused looks washing over their eyes. Demeter's eyes widened suddenly as she realized what else might be at stake. Nemesis frowned as her eyes made contact with the lord of the Underworld and the pair stared at each other for a second before she lowered her head. "The Moirae…"

"Impossible," Zeus sternly replied, barely glancing over at the nebiaids before shaking his head. He seemed to vaguely remember hearing this before but the concept had seemed too ridiculous for him to believe. "The Moirae can't be –"

"It's true," Eris scowled as she rubbed the back of her neck, glaring at Athena momentarily before stepping forward. Ares flinched, causing her to hiss at him and Hephaestus took a step forward to stop it from escalating. Nemesis reached out to grab her sister's elbow, but the goddess of discord pulled her arm away and through it in the air. "I wouldn't **be** here otherwise! And no matter what the reason, we're here to help so just fucking _accept_ it and move on - we have a battle to win here!"

Philotes smiled at her sister, knowing that was the kindest thing that was going to come from her mouth and she stepped forward to place a hand on her shoulder. Eris sniffed the air as she turned her head away from the group and lifted a hand to scratch at her face, but the rest of the room knew her fingers were collecting embarrassing tears. Hera frowned as took a step closer to her husband and the tips of her fingers reached out for his hand. When he clasped his around her, she closed her eyes and took in a deep breath.

"All right," Zeus affirmed, gathering the attention from everyone in the room. His bright blue eyes calmly looked over a very scared and confused group and as he squeezed his wife's hand, he had realized for the first time what a terrible curse it was to be a mortal ruler; once unsympathetic to their complaints of responsibility, he could clearly understand the consequences and strong desire to protect those that served him. His eyes met with Athena's and for a split second, she wished to release him of this burden. She would have stepped forward to take the charge if it meant living alone with the consequences afterwards, but he pulled his eyes from her and withdrew any chance of that happening.

"To battle."


	39. Chapter 38: The Calm

Wow! It's coming up to almost a year since I started this. I think it's time to kick this into gear and finish it off before I hit that year mark! ;) We're nearing the end here, folks ..!

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Finding the path to Gaia and her followers had not been difficult. Unwilling to fight Nyx, she fought in the daylight and did nothing to hide her whereabouts. Great earthquakes rumbled for hundreds of miles from where she stood while her children walked around to guard her. Hermes had flown ahead with Nike to view their chances and when an arrow sliced the messenger god's face, they knew the primordial goddess was well defended.

The news was not encouraging: Gaia had become strong enough to raise up an army of giants and Cyclopes to make up for the lacking presence of titans. She was leveling mountains, destroying villages in terrible earthquakes and seemingly growing stronger in the process. Hermes was able to confirm the titans plus more that Themis had surmised on Gaia's side. Though their numbers might not have been greater, their power was strong and the Olympians were fading quickly.

Rhea was the only one missing from the group, as she had left to find those she could to protect what few mortals were left on the planet. For the rest, Zeus was leading the walk into the formalities of war. Though, as Athena had pointed out, such manners in war had long been exterminated among humans, Zeus saw no honor in attacking without a parley first. The opposition was well aware of their incoming force as within minutes of their march, a tall titan was making her way towards them. As they neared, Themis recognized her as Theia immediately and frowned, causing a few others to become mildly uncomfortable.

"My friends," the titan started and from behind there was a loud, obnoxious laugh which most knew immediately to be Ares. Despite him, she smiled and offered her hands out to show she carried no weapons and bore no threat. No one did the same for her. "This is not a battle we wish to endure."

"Then step aside," Athena called out and she stepped forward to show herself more clearly.

"That is not an option," the titan frowned as her eyes fell upon the war-clad goddess. "Mother does not seek your ruin but her own salvation."

"She does not trust my rule," Zeus replied calmly, barely glancing at Athena who retreated back into the crowd. "We have saved her from their destructive hands and she defies me by continuing."

"She was in pain," Theia offered though her volume dropped considerably.

"And that has passed. So must her actions," the thunder god spoke simply, picking his words carefully as not to arouse the small army behind him just yet.

"She will recognize your authority again when they are eradicated," the titan attempted to reply firmly, but it was obviously not in her nature to be strict.

"And you join them because you know our fate is entwined with them," Hera spoke up suddenly, causing several gods to flinch as no one wished to admit it – in case they hadn't known. Unfortunately, Theia did not make any indication that this was news. "You think this will be easy."

"I join because my mother was dying," the brown-eyed titan sighed. As her eyes scanned the group, it was obvious she was searching for another face, someone that could sympathize with her plight easier than the others. When her sight caught Themis' glance, her eyes widened in a mild shock before she took a step forward and was greeted by Athena's spear. "I never want to see that pain on her again. Maybe the others have stacked the odds before choosing, but I would stand with her even if I were alone. Themis, please … The last war was terrible and we don't wish it again," she pleaded quietly.

"War is here whether you wish it or not," she replied, her cold tone and demeanor no comfort for Theia. "Do not ask me to choose you over my family as you would not do the same for me."

Theia paused as her mouth opened slightly, as if she were ready to retort but she lost the will to speak. Her eyes widened slightly as she looked over the titan's shoulder to see her daughter, Dike, and her weakening state was unmistakable. The earthen titan bowed her head as she closed her eyes, sighing quietly to herself before turning around and walking back towards the chaos her mother was creating. Phobos flinched while Eris was held back by Nemesis, both tempted to attack while the titan was turned and defenseless.

As the titan joined her side, the titans turned towards the Olympians and they could finally see just whom they were facing. Selene and Helios stood next to Pheobe, an ancient predecessor. Theia and Eurybia stood close to each other with Mnemosyne, Asteria and Perses to their right. Ares grinned as the opposition became clear and he elbowed Apollo in the side (who gave the god a slight grimace).

"What is this, an army of women?" he chuckled and just as the sun god began to grin, his eyes falling upon the many female titans before them, Artemis sniffed and grunted.

"Only you would be stupid enough to see that as a disadvantage," she snapped quietly.

"And only women ever say that," Ares retorted rather gracefully (for him) and before Artemis could turn on him, Apollo raised his hands up and sighed.

"Save it," he groaned, putting his hands up to both of them before pointing forward. "For them."

Poseidon grinned at the trio but when he felt a push against his arm, he looked to his right and down at Psyche, who had maneuvered away from her husband. The sea god blinked in response before she lowered her eyes and took in a deep breath.

"Remember," she started quietly, biting her lip for a second before looking back up into his beautiful blue eyes. "When you told me not to worry … unless you and Hades were fighting?"

Hearing his name, Hades looked back over his shoulder at Poseidon who briefly locked eyes with him before turning them up to the sky. He hummed, as if trying to recall this moment when he said such things and, placing a hand on Psyche's shoulder, he smiled down to her. He first resisted a joke and then nodded.

"I do remember," he replied softly before giving her a wink. "But not yet. I'll let you know when to worry."

The mortal turned goddess smiled, comforted by his words despite their falsehood. She knew this was a time to worry. Though as a mortal she had never faced battle or even stood on a battlefield, she had known from the stories when a battle looked grim. Eros frowned as he reached his wife, knowing the look in her eyes and placed a hand on her back as he leaned his head down, kissing her temple.

"You shouldn't be here," he whispered to her gently, trying not to sound cruel but feared for her safety. She had never been trained for this, not like Athena and Artemis. Nor was she experienced, like Hera and Demeter. She simply joined the fight to enrich their numbers and Eros had been unhappy about it from the start.

"I have every right to be here," she snapped quietly, her anger flaring up that her husband was so distrusting of her abilities. She reached a hand up to wipe away her eye, turning away from him to hide it.

"Maybe to watch, but not to fight," he emphasized her shortcomings, offended she was taking his affection for mistreatment.

"This was my _home_, Eros," she retorted again, her volume still low but her tone strong and clear. "You all fight for your own survival, but this world is still my own. Would you begrudge Heracles for his want to fight?"

"Heracles is skilled!" Eros replied exasperated and when his wife seemed to grow more annoyed, he grabbed her hands before she could speak and he sighed. "I won't force you to leave. But you will not fight alone."

The pair stared at each other for a moment, both on the edge and ready to strike if another word of the argument broke through. But Psyche's silence meant she agreed to stay by his side and his own meant he empathized with her desire. Smiling, he lifted her hands and kissed her fingers. Psyche smiled despite herself and clenched his hand, looking out at the titans that were now lined up side-by-side the cyclopes and giants.

"The giants are mine," Heracles called out as he slammed his golden club against the ground, grinning at the largest one across from him. The giant shifted his shoulders and raised his head, accepting the challenge silently.

"We must work together," Athena ordered immediately as she briefly looked to Heracles, knowing his lust for glory often took precedence over teamwork; he didn't take his eyes off of the giant. She clenched her jaw tightly before looking to Zeus, who nodded approval and she continued. "The titans are few but powerful; they are the true enemy, not the others. Do not attack Gaia until they are down. Do not let them separate you from us. And above all – _obey_ orders!"

Several of the gods turned to Ares in this instance and he merely shrugged, aware she was speaking almost directly to him. Him and his crew were certainly the most fearsome looking as they stood shoulder to shoulder, decked out in their war gear and most of it covered in someone else's blood. Nike's wings were twitching as she was itching to take off into the sky and Adrestia spun a knife between her fingers casually. Ares had his sword drawn and resting on his shoulder, displaying the stains of blood from his previous endeavor and grinning maliciously at his prime target.

Apollo, Artemis , Eros and Psyche were visibly readying their arrows from the back of the group, pulling them into their bows and awaiting any sort of signal from the front lines. Hermes fell to the back to, hopefully, be lost amongst the crowd for his strategy in battle was not to be seen. Off to the side, Hephaestus was the only to see Dionysus rub his eyes. The smith god always had a difficulty reading others and knowing what to say, so he simply patted the wine god on the back – who consequently winced in pain and glared at him. Nemesis and her family were near Ares', all with their weapons drawn and standing in ready position exception Philotes. The friendly nebiaid had come with no weapons and looked terribly unprepared, but as her safety was no one's priority, she was not questioned.

The titans were a mass in numbers, though their flanks were littered with larger creatures rather than gods. In the center core were the strong few who had all seen this war before. Phoebe stood close to the center with Theia, giving off the impression one of them was the leader. She was the tallest of them all, with broad, strong shoulders and long silver hair that was put into a single braid. She had armor on that seemed to shine of its own accord a silver glow and a curved crescent sword in her right hand. To her left was Selene, her shorter heir with a crescent upon her forehead and a set of armor that, similar to Pheobe's, gave off a hint of a silver glow. Her brother was to her left, Helios, a golden haired god with a glowing bow and arrow set that sat on his back. To Pheobe's right was the brown hair goddess Theia who wore no armor and bore no weapons. To her right was Eurybia, the titan Poseidon had come to know from the waters. She had very short white hair but her body was littered in scales mixed in with her skin. She carried a whip around her neck and a curved sword in her hand with the tip of the sword tapping the ground. To her right was Mnemosyne, a red haired titan with a set of dull grey armor and a lance. Then the black haired Asteria who wore a set of black armor and carried a clear sword and finally was Asteria's husband, Perses, who wore a golden set of armor that looked cracked and used from centuries of work. He carried a large sword upon his back, several daggers at his waist and had a war hammer in his hands; he was the only titan that looked considerably prepared and _excited_ to fight.

Heracles slammed the club against the crowd and let out a loud war cry, causing the nebïaids and Ares' group to reply. Demeter looked to Zeus and Hera who simply stared straight ahead. Hades and Poseidon glanced to each other but as Heracles cried out again, this time Athena joined, raising her spear and crying out with the rest. Each time Heracles roared out, someone new joined them until they were all shouting to a somewhat beat.

The titans were unmoved, simply standing there as if they had no intentions of attacking. The shouts were touching their ears as if the group was standing only a few feet from them rather than yards but no one made a move. The giants looked around for a signal, which caused the Cyclopes then to do the same but the titans in the center simply stared straight ahead. The shouter grew louder and louder as if the Olympians marched on them and only after a few more seconds of this did Helios and Selene draw their bows. Phoebe put her hand up to hold them back and they waited, their arrows pointed and eyes fixed. Apollo and Artemis adjusted themselves accordingly, aiming their arrows for the two that threatened them immediately while Eros and Psyche remained on target. Just as it seemed nothing was going to happen, a loud crack wailed from the skies and a blinding light caused both sides to turn and hush. The roaring ceased as a bolt of lightning shot down at the feet of the titans, causing Phoebe to draw her arms out and push them back. The giants and Cyclopes stumbled back several feet in shock, some crying out but the bolt had not touched anyone. It had singed the ground at their feet and when the dust settled, the titans could visibly see Zeus and Hera grinning. Immediately, the titans roared out in retaliation, striking their weapons into the air and burst out into a run towards the Olympians.

It had begun.


	40. Chapter 39: The Storm, Part One

Sorry for the hiatus! So many people got married this summer, hehe. :) Here we go!

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Once the fighting had broken out, the clear-cut division of sides vanished. The trail of certain gods was evidence, such as the lightning storm that followed Zeus and Hera wherever they went or the geysers where Poseidon stood. The ground was singe, soaked and torn apart by both sides, causing the battlefield to turn into a sad disastrous mudslide. Arrows were still flying from Eros and Psyche who stayed at good lengths from a sword, instead hoping to aid those seemingly in the most need. As they pointed their tips to Helios, the pair released it nearly simultaneously and the arrows screamed through the air in his direction. Unfortunately, the titan knew the sound perfectly and dodged them, glaring at the amateur archers momentarily while Apollo found this moment to slam the hilt of his sword into the sun titan's face.

He cried out, bringing a hand to his jaw as he stumbled back and turned his bright eyes to his opponent. Bringing his own curved sword up, he slammed the Olympian's away from him and brought it around again to strike. Apollo was quick enough to dodge to the side and grabbed an arrow from his quiver to use as a dagger. While his right hand swung the sword at Helios' face, the tip of the arrow lunged in from underneath to strike at his exposed thigh. He managed to retreat from the sword's tip at his face, but the arrow struck into his thigh and he cried out again, but this time used his momentum of leaning forward to grab Apollo's throat.

"Stand down, boy," he growled as he pushed forward and slammed the Olympian into a mountainside. The blonde let out a grunt while he closed his eyes and put his hands on Helios' wrists. As he struggled to pulled the hand from his throat, the titan pulled him back and slammed him into the wall again. Apollo attempted to croak a few words out but between his airway closed tight and the breath being knocked out of him, he couldn't muster much of anything. He did, however, feel his feet firmly in the ground. Pushing them down, he was able to use his pinned body against the wall for support and slam both of his feet into Helios' stomach, causing him to lose grip and stumble back. He stabilized himself before falling into the mud, but not in time to see Apollo's arrow flying at him; the tip slammed into his armor on his right shoulder and Helios blinked, looking to the arrow and grabbed it, breaking it off easily. He grinned, turning to his younger successor who seemed a bit perturbed that his arrow didn't do much damage.

"You're too confident," Helios replied to Apollo's face as he pulled out an arrow and readied it in his bow. "It hinders you."

"Learned from the best," Apollo cheekily replied with a cool grin, his eyes watching the arrow's tip to see where it would target. The titan frowned as the tip moved from spot to spot and the Olympian paused, realizing the titan was attempting to find a place to paralyze but not destroy. The two had shared quite a bit when he stepped down from his position, literally giving the reigns of the sun to Apollo and had come to enjoy each other's company in the short period. They were very alike; narcissistic, vain, proud and over-confident, and though one would think it clashed, it had always worked between them. Apollo frowned suddenly as well, realizing he was just as unhappy to fight Helios specifically. Unfortunately the titan released the arrow as it pointed to Apollo's knee and the Olympian was caught off guard. He yelled out as the arrow slammed into his knee cap and pierced through, coming out the back of his leg.

Apollo fell to the knee, which caused the arrow to push in further and he grimaced, feeling every bit of that pain and movement. Helios frowned, as if to silently apologize and turned around, looking upon the battle as to where to join next. The Olympian sneered, an expression that usually never came across his soft features and he pulled an arrow from the quiver. Tightening it into the bow, Helios could hear the string and he turned in time to see the arrow pierce the back of his arm. The titan yelled out as he lifted his arm, staring down the arrow and the blood that was trickling out. As he moved to grab it, another arrow came whizzing by and he dodged it this time, turning to glare at Apollo who had pulled another arrow to the ready.

The third arrow was released but this time, Helios had been plenty ready for it. His good arm moved out and grabbed the arrow in mid-air, which had been pointed for his face. As the two knew their faces were quite important to their egos, he took this at a great personal offense and growled lowly. Stepping forward, Apollo reached for another arrow but he was too slow – Helios grabbed the wrist that attempted for one and he put his other hand on Apollo's face.

"You can stop this," he offered begrudgingly, like he wanted to continue but felt obliged to give the option. His palm was completely spread over the Olympian's face and his fingertips were pressing in. When Apollo gave no such command or white flag, the titan began to heat his body and in consequence, his fingertips. His hair, skin and armor all began to glow as he began to heat himself akin to the sun, causing his fingertips to slowly scald Apollo's face. Realizing what was happening, he reached for his sword but Helios kicked at the hand and stepped on his wrist. Apollo yelped out in pain from his hand, but it didn't stop as the heat became intense on his face. He could hear his skin boiling underneath the fingers and sizzling under the heat. He had no time to think of the vanity issues as he worried now he would simply be boiled alive underneath this titan's feet. He closed his eyes, trying to concentrate on taking the heat like he often did so high in the sky. But unlike Helios, he was akin to the sun or of its nature, he simply controlled it, which was the biggest difference between the titans and the Olympians. He thought briefly of sweeping his leg underneath the titan, but it would have required an uninjured knee, but he was becoming desperate. As he moved to try it, the fingers suddenly released him and he collapsed to the ground, bringing a hand to his face. All he could hear was a shout from the titan and hear heavy footsteps in front of him.

"You all right?" the gruff voice of Hephaestus asked and Apollo nodded his head without looking up.

"I need time to heal," he quietly offered as an explanation behind his hand as his other reached down for the arrow in his knee.

"Don't worry, brother. I can handle the heat," Hephaestus grinned as he raised his hammer and ran at the titan. The war hammer slammed into Helios' chest, sending him flying into the mountainside and causing quite a rumble.

The shout of her brother had caused Selene to look over at the scene and she paused, wondering if she had the time to help him. The arrow that whizzed by her face and slammed into the tree trunk reminded her she was locked in battle with Artemis and she turned, glaring at the huntress as she ran at the titan with two daggers in hand. She shouted out as she winded her left arm back and Selene parried her crescent sword to swing Artemis' first dagger up. Expecting that, the huntress attempted to jab her left dagger into the titan's side but Selene was too quick. She slammed her elbow down onto the top of Artemis' hand before the dagger could touch her side. The huntress kept a firm grip so not to drop it but she had to recoil the dagger in the process, leaving herself open for Selene's knee that slammed into her stomach. Artemis winced, pulling back as she crouched down and grunted. Seeing the braid that the huntress had her hair back in and grabbed it, pulling the huntress' head up and she winced in pain. Selene brought the crescent sword across and chopped it off only inches from the back of her head. Artemis fell to the ground with a thud and her new short hair falling in front of her eyes. She glared at the ground and clenched her hands around her daggers and reached out, slamming one into Selene's foot. She cried out in pain, dropping the sword and to her knees to grab the dagger. Now at her level, Selene bared her teeth like an animal, causing Artemis only to grin slightly as she swept her left hand with the dagger across and sliced Selene's cheek.

She yelled out, recoiling back as she pulled the dagger from her foot and now threw it at Artemis, who rolled and dodged it easily. She turned to see where it landed and scrambled to it, but now at a distance she knew she was better off with arrows. Slamming the bloodied dagger into its sheath on her thigh, she pulled out an arrow and turned on one knee to face the titan, who already had an arrow pulled into her bow. The huntress pulled her own and the two froze in their positions.

"Your brother is bested," Selene called out as she readied her arrow for Artemis' chest.

"Yet you are not," Artemis replied simply without emotion, knowing Selene was hoping to solicit emotion for her twin. She knew better and ignored the idea of her brother in trouble; her eyes were locked on her target and vice versa. The two females stood in perfect position, waiting for the other to shoot or blink. Artemis had her tip pointed to Selene's eye, a strange choice that the titan noticed but also feared would strike if she released. It seemed the pair were locked into the stand still which caught Athena's eye, who was battling the titan Mnemosyne upon the top of a cliff. The war goddess sniffed as she turned to the approaching titan and she crouched down suddenly, catching her off guard and grabbing her by the waist. Using the titan's momentum, she hurled her over the side of the cliff and directly at Selene. When their bodies collided and Selene tumbled to the ground, the arrow was released yards away from the huntress and she blinked, retreating her arrow as she looked to the source to see Athena on the edge of a cliff, giving the huntress a judgmental look.

"What?" she called up with her arms open wide.

"You're needed elsewhere. Leave Selene to others," she called back before disappearing. The huntress grumbled under her breath as she looked to Selene who was trying to push Mnemosyne off of her and she hesitated, desperately wanting to strike down her predecessor. Letting a few swears fly from her mouth, she broke out into a run behind her, hoping Selene would follow her and she would have no choice but to stand and fight her anyway. Disappearing into a clump of trees, Selene shouted out to her companion before the two rose to their feet and went off in search of new targets. High atop the cliff, Athena had broke into a run and surveyed the scene, which was chaotic and spread out. Mildly annoyed no one had remembered her orders to stick together, she could see a single titan taking down several Olympians easily – a fate that was easily avoidable. Athena's eyes briefly washed over Ares' group, but as long as all of them were still standing, she would leave them to their own devices. She turned to see the giants enclosing around Heracles and she turned to see Dionysus leaning against a tree.

"Dionysus! Cover Heracles' left!" Athena barked out from above, pointing down to the scene while glaring at the wine god.

"I'm fine!" Heracles replied as he slammed his club into the shin of a giant whose deep bass voice cried out loudly enough to cause a quake in the rocks around them. The warrior god had already taken four giants down himself and as he hurled his shoulder into the shin of another, it was clear he was attempting to break his previous record. The smile that every so often graced his face showed his exhilaration to be back on the battlefield. He dropped the club to grab the ankle of a giant and as he grunted, lifting him up, he ignored how this usually would be much easier and spun his opponent around about four times before releasing him to the mercy of a stone wall. The giant's head slammed into it first and the rest of his body crumpled up from the momentum before he crashed into the ground motionless.

Finally after a few tries, the giants began to realize their power was in numbers against him. Two of the giants decided to attack together and they raised their hands with boulders and hurled them in his direction. The god tucked and rolled easily out of the way of the first, but only missed the second by inches. His club was behind them so his greatest weapon was now, as always, his strength. He took a few steps forward as the giants ran at him and he slammed his fist into the thigh of the giant on the right, but the one of the left saw the opening and took it: he swung his large fist around and pummeled Heracles on the side of the head, causing his ear to pop and a loud ringing to flood his head. He tightened his jaw as he fell to his knees, a hand cupping over his ear to try and ease the pain but it was deafening and debilitating. The giant to the right who had fallen to one knee in pain grimaced at first, but chuckled when he saw the god in a compromising position. He folded his hands together into a single fist and raised it high to slam it down atop of Heracles' head and the god was slammed into the ground face first. When he didn't stand up immediately, Dionysus stepped forward in a panic and realized he could no longer hesitate – Heracles really did need his help.

The wine god pulled from the forest and looked around, walking in a circle as he looked for anything he could use to help in the situation. When his eyes trailed up the mountainside, he could see vines that grew out of the rock and something green high above. His purple eyes darted down to the scene of the giants kicking, pulling and throwing Heracles like a toy and he took in a deep breath, knowing he was running out of time. He put his hands out and closed his eyes, trying hard to concentrate. Not very skilled in hand-to-hand combat, Dionysus had to rely on the work of his powers to save the day. The vines creaked, at first, from his beckons, moving slightly through the rock as if to grow faster but not move. A thick portion broke through the rocks and caused a few pieces to roll down the side, but they went unnoticed by the dim-witted enemies. Dionysus was somewhat pained by the force the vines needed to move to his will but he continued on, his eyebrows furrowing intensely and his arms tensed up as he watched and waited for the perfect moment. The vines were pulled forward again from the mountainside and this time, a collection of separated rocks came rolling down and tapped at the giant's feet. The left one was distracted by this, letting go of Heracles' neck and looked at the mountain. He frowned as he stepped forward to inspect the wall and he quietly gasped as he saw the vines creeping out between the cracks.

Unaware of Dionysus' presence, the giants chuckled at the sight, believing it to be either their mother or Theia beckoning their prey into the wall. One of the stomped over to the limp body of Heracles and placed their entire palm on the top of his head. Lifting him easily, the wine god briefly paused to see if Heracles would fight – but he was not even awake to be aware of his circumstances. Clenching his jaw together, Dionysus returned to the effort while the giant held Heracles before the stonewall as an offering.

"He's all yours!" one announced loudly while the other laughed, leaning forward to inspect the vines as they coiled out between the cracks. Dionysus grunted quietly at their call and let the moment happen: he flinched as his entire body tensed up and clenched his fists shut, causing the vines the reach out quickly and grab at the giant's wrists, necks and arms. The one holding Heracles dropped him immediately, yelling out as he backed up to try and escape. The other grabbed at the vines to rip them off, but they were streaming out of the stones too quickly. They now wrapped around their calves, ankles and abdomen, beckoning them into the wall where there simply was no room for them. They cried out to Gaia, thinking she was turning on them as they clamored to be free but only became entangled further. The vines pulled them into the wall and Dionysus fell to his knees, his face turning red as he looked pained and tense. The giants yelled in vain as no one could hear them over the roar of the battlefield and as they were pulled into the wall, the rocks began to separate from the mountain from the force. They rolled down the side and began burying them from the outside. Their shouts became muffled through the process due to the heads being covered by the mountainside and the sound of the rocks cascading down their backside. When all that was left to hear were the rocks, Dionysus breathed a sigh of relief as he collapsed forward onto his stomach and closed his eyes, only the feint sight of smile appearing over his lips.

Athena had watched from her cliff above while she wrestled with Mnemosyne absent mindedly once again. Her nose curled up in annoyance when the titan attempted to land a punch to her face, thus making it difficult to see Dionysus' outcome in battle and the war goddess sighed, finally deciding to engage the goddess completely. She hooked her arm around Mnemosyne's from her extended, and missed, punch and turned her back on her, hoisted the titan over her shoulder and slamming her back onto the ground. Athena then slammed her foot onto the titan's throat, pulled the lance from her back and jammed it into her shoulder. The titan's mouth cried out in pain but no sound could come forth from the damage to her throat and Athena pointed to her, mumbling a quiet, "Stay" before turning around to face the scene of Dionysus falling and Heracles unmoved.

"Iris!" the goddess called out as she ran forward and jumped off the edge. Sweeping down passed her, the trailing rainbow acted like a guiding slide for Athena while Iris landed on the ground in between Dionysus and Heracles. She looked between them before looking to the goddess for direction. "Get them back to Olympus," Athena ordered, pointing to both of them hastily before turning around to seek out other battles. Iris kneeled down to Dionysus, placed a hand on his shoulder and leaned forward, hoping to hear some grumble out of him like she always had. When nothing came, she leaned back to look at Heracles, imaging he was in the same condition and she quietly hummed to herself, wondering just exactly how she was going to lift these men up.

By the time the rainbow goddess had the thought to ask, Athena was nowhere in sight. She had run through the woods, back to where she had left Mnemosyne but now only a bloodstain marked her spot. The goddess was clearly unhappy but she continued her path to find others, trying hard to ignore the growing annoyance with their separation. She stepped out from the edge of the small forest to see a giant consequential wave heading her way. Her eyes widened slightly before she stepped to the side, jumped and grabbed onto a branch to hold herself high above the flood. She sniffed at the smell of seawater and looked towards the cause, seeing Poseidon riding the wave towards Theia who was weaponless. Demeter was standing alone with her eyes closed and her hands open-palmed facing the ground as her lips moved only slightly, like she was whispering to someone very close by. Theia put her hand up in a stop signal to Poseidon but instead of him halting, a wall of dirt formed up in front of her and his wave crashed into it. Though about half of it turned to mud, the outer edge remained still and she then pushed her hands out, forcing the dirt to fly at the sea god who was pushed off the water and onto the ground.

She grinned, clenching her hand as she noticed this and the ground rose up around him, grasping at his body and attempting to pull him in. It had been the same strategy Demeter had tried to employ when they were fighting him before – using the ground to dry his body of any water. The roots grasped onto his skin, which immediately began turning red as they attempted to dehydrate him quickly. Theia required concentration in this process as Poseidon fought it, which Demeter knew, and took this moment to raise her hands up in the air. From underneath the titan's feet sprung roots and vines at Demeter's command, grabbing and wrapping around Theia's legs. They began to drag her down, causing her to lose sight of Poseidon's plight and he immediately broke free. Theia threw an arm out towards Demeter, causing the ground underneath her to bow to the titan's command and it collapsed. The Olympian shrieked as she dropped to her knees, but it wasn't enough to steady her – the dirt was engulfing her and Poseidon raced to her side.

"Demeter!" he shouted out and she put a hand out, glaring at him briefly before looking down to her waist where the dirt had come to swallow her.

"Don't! You'll only be dragged in too," she ordered and she tried to beckon a vine to grasp. Poseidon saw a glimpse of green, but it wasn't enough; the ground around swallowed it whole and she was left to the sinking dirt around her. As she fell deeper up to her chin and the sea god was frozen in place, she looked at him finally in a state of panic and her eyes apologized.

"LET HER GO!" he roared defiantly as he spun around, racing towards Theia whose eyes widened as he approached, but she was still pulling Demeter's vines off of her. She put her hands up to stop him but his fist had swung with enough intensity and momentum that he couldn't stop it, even if he had wanted to. His fist slammed against the titan's cheek and she fell back immediately, landing on the ground with a whine. She placed a hand on her cheek and winced in pain as the ground began to drag her in too. Poseidon paused, staring at her as if she should cry for help as well, but when she grinned before disappearing, he knew she did it to hide. He spun around, eyes widening at Demeter's disappearance and he ran forth before collapsing on his knees and began to dig with his hands. "Demeter! DEMETER!"

"Move," Hades commanded quietly as he grabbed his brother's shoulder and pulled him up, not a mean feat when the lord of the seas was panicking. When Poseidon finally adhered to his brother's command, Hades snapped his fingers and then did not move, causing the sea god to glare at him. Every second they stood there felt like an elongated minute and that they were doing nothing to help her – Poseidon continued to look between his brother and the ground, awaiting for some sign of help. The sounds of battle all around them waged on, with metal clanging against itself, screams of pain and cries of victory plagued their silence as they simply stared at the ground where their sister once stood.

Just as Poseidon grew anxious and took a step forward, the dirt started to shift and break apart by the tip of a single horse nose. Hades smiled slightly as two other noses appeared before the hooves began pulling themselves from the earth. As quick as they could manage, his steeds were rising from the dirt and the middle one was clearly seen with hands grasped around its neck. As Demeter's face broke through the ground, she gasped loudly for air and her eyes opened to the blinding sunlight. Wincing, she grimaced as she continued her labored breathing while the steeds pulled themselves from the ground and an empty carriage at the end of their reigns. Finally, when all was out, they marched over to Hades and bowed their heads, letting Demeter fall safely to her feet and stumble forward. Poseidon put his arms out, grabbing her so she may steady herself and she placed a hand on her head, smiling slightly.

"See? No problem," she coarsely joked while Poseidon frowned.

"Not funny," he grumbled and the irony of him not finding it humorous was not lost on Demeter or Hades. She patted his chest and nodded a silent thank you to Hades before stepping between them and eyeing the area. Unlike Athena, they were unable to see any order in the chaos or know where to start looking for their next target. Demeter beckoned towards the ground with her fingers and several vines crept up to give her back her lost sword, which she firmly grabbed with her right hand. Hades was still in possession of his own, plus the armory his chariot had brought with and Poseidon held his trident in hand, but the three were lost in their next move.

"Perhaps we should split up," Hades suggested quietly as his eyes surveyed the scene, landing several times upon struggling allies.

"No," Demeter firmly denied as she looked between her brothers. "Theia is our target."

Hades raised an eyebrow at her assertive nature on the topic but said nothing on it. The trio silently agreed to the idea and boarded the chariot of the Underworld to see if they could once again find the earthen titan. As they rode, Poseidon shouted something over the roar of lightning but the words were indistinguishable. He then wrapped an arm around Demeter's neck and pulled her down, causing Hades to glance and subsequently duck with them. Over their heads flew Phobos, who was thrown from battle by the monstrously size titan, Perses. Without the direct pull from their master, the steeds reared to the left away from the menacing battle and then halted when affronted by the next. As Hades stood to see, he grimaced as Asteria sliced open Apate's face with the glass sword. Quickly, he pulled the reigns to the side to give further direction and the trio fled the scene in search of their target while Themis, Dike, Nemesis, Eris and Apate continued to struggle with the celestial titan.

Not only did the difficulty come from Asteria's mastery of the blade, but her speed physically and mentally was beyond any of them. It was as if she was thinking about her next move before executing the first or that she had known their moves before they did. Nemesis had come the closest to sparring with her for over a minute, but the celestial titan landed a knee to her gut causing her a pause in step. Themis tried to make order and reason out of the events, but Asteria was silent on the matter and continued her affront without pause or hesitation. Apate had been too quick for her own thoughts and left herself wide open for the sword that cut at her face, leaving her now on the ground, trying to hold her face together.

"Philotes!" Nemesis barked out to her sister who stood on the side, hidden from sight. The friendly goddess stepped out as she looked upon the scene and her eyes widened at Apate's bleeding face. She immediately rushed out to aid her but she running had caught Asteria's eye. The white-eyed titan parried Dike's sword, stepped towards her and locked their arms together. Dike only had time to gasp as her arm was pinned against Asteria's breastplate and then the elbow flew up and slammed into her face. She dropped her weapon, wincing and stumbling back when her arm was released. This gave Asteria the free time to spin and run at Philotes with her weapon out at the ready. Eris screamed out, throwing a dagger at the advancing titan but it was easily dodged. Nemesis broke out into a run and jumped, taking off into the air but even her speed was not enough. Philotes stumbled back in surprise when she saw her coming, but it was too late; Asteria's sword slammed into her stomach. The titan's lips sneered at the brown-eyed nebïaid as she gasped for breath; staring shocked at her assailant, she reached her hand for Asteria's face and simply whispered, "Ow."

Asteria paused momentarily, confused at the simplicity of the response but as she heard Nemesis descend upon her, she quickly pulled her blade from the bleeding stomach and spun out of the way. Nemesis was forced to veer to the left to avoid slamming her sword into her sister, but now she stood above her and wrapped an arm around her back. Eris had already taken to the sky, throwing what daggers she had left her towards Asteria and growing more frustrated as they continually missed. Asteria ducked behind a tree to flee from the flying weapons, but she suddenly found herself pinned between the tree and the tip of a blade. Glancing to her left, she saw a very calm Themis who judged her with every burning glance.

"That," the righteous titan began quietly but controlled. "was unnecessary."

Asteria's only response was a slight smirk before the ground collapsed underneath Themis; she stumbled back immediately, causing her to lose her blade point advantage. Asteria took that second to slam the sword from her direction all together and stepped forward, advancing on the suddenly vulnerable titan who was forced back several steps before the ground stopped betraying her. The celestial titan ran forward and as their swords clashed, their dance began. Eris hung in the air, watching from above as Asteria continued to advance, pushing Themis back continually into defensive moves, but even such a position didn't mare the awe of her capacity to keep up. The blades were swinging in every direction and each clang only gave more hope that at least one of them could keep her busy. Dike shouted to Eris who let her eyes linger a bit longer before she turned to her sisters as commanded while they had the time.

"It's – I – I'm okay," Philotes stuttered on the other side of the battle, her lips quivering and her eyes growing wet from the sheer volume of pain she was enduring. Nemesis frowned, pulling her sister closer to her chest as she looked around for a place to lay her. From behind, Apate had risen to her feet with a hand on her face, both now covered in black blood. She sniffed, pointing her free hand to an opening to a cave; she clenched her jaw to avoiding speak or moving her face, but when Nemesis didn't quite understand, Apate simply walked in that direction. Confused, Nemesis followed anyway as she carried her whimpering sister.

"Apate –" Nemesis called out but her sibling ignored her call and disappeared into the darkness of the cave. She looked over her shoulder, worried about leaving Themis and Dike alone but she suddenly heard a voice in the darkness that snapped her attention back to the cave. When she entered the darkness to lay her sister down, Nemesis hummed to herself before commenting, "I thought you weren't going to get involved."

"Shut up," came the grumpy voice from everywhere, leaving the goddess no direction to look in particular. Underneath her hood, Nemesis grinned slightly which caused Erebus to grumble out loud as he formed his body in the darkness. There was a slight popping sound when he was finished forming and he waved a hand in the air, trying to send her away as he kneeled down to his bleeding daughters. "Go do something useful."


	41. Chapter 40: The Storm, Part Two

Amidst the fighting, Hera and Zeus had put on an impressive display of lightning. The dark clouds had festered before the battle and had not dissipated nor scattered since. When both of them would call down the powerful bolts, it looked to be raining light; as the bolts touched down to earth, they would rip of parts of the earth and singe all they touched. The bright flashes the lightning created would blind anyone near by, often causing hesitation or blind attacks.

Hera had long kept her control of lightning a secret from the rest of the immortal world, fearing it would lessen Zeus' dominance. Unfortunately the need for her strength and for such power outweighed whatever consequences would arise in the future. She wielded the bolts with such ease, it would seem she had been doing it her entire life. Her arm would extend and throw them as if throwing a lightweight spear. Whenever a bolt would make a connection to an enemy, Hera would grin victoriously which for any on–looker was a disturbing sight; well, for everyone except her husband.

Though a powerful player on the battlefield, Zeus was quite distracted by the aura of his wife. He had not known this fervor was still inside her, as it was this ferocity that he fell in love with many centuries ago. She had proven the most powerful of her sisters in battle - which was less impressive than it sounded, as Hestia did not fight. Unlike Zeus and his brothers, she was light on her feet and seemed to sway with the wind, giving her the appearance of a graceful nymph. Unfortunately for those she approached, her weightlessness was a powerful illusion; her sword would swing down with a fierce blow that always surprised the recipient. It was as if she could somehow channel all of her strength into a single blow and still do it all over again in the second. Despite all their problems and differences, Zeus would have it no other way; he needed a powerful woman at his side and there was no doubt she was the one. A smirk ran across his lips as he snuck another glance to her and her sword slammed into Eurybia's shield.

The water titan had braced herself in the moment, no longer off put by Hera's potency in battle. Where the notch would have formed in the shield from her sword instead came a splatter of water, spraying out towards Hera who turned her head to avoid it splashing in her eyes. Eurybia kneeled down onto one knee to further let the impact settle and used the pause in Hera's step to reach over the shield and stab at her. The goddess jerked her sword upwards to parry it over her head but the blade burst into water so only the hilt was left. Eurybia grinned as Hera's eyes widened, trying to spot the droplets as they curved in their air and moved to reform the blade. Quickly, she lifted her leg up and kicked at the shield, causing the titan to falter and the blade, even though reformed, was no longer positioned fatally.

"This is -" Eurybia started to shout but she was drowned out by a bolt of lightning that Hera called from the sky. The titan quickly let her body exploded in a burst of water, which separated when the bolt struck the ground. Hera grinned when she realized her attack had cut her off and she stepped back, trying to find where she would reform. In that time, Zeus had taken down the small army of Cyclopes that where attempting to protect the titan.

"She's forming!" the goddess shouted to her husband in a warning and he turned to her, in time to see the titan in question rising from the ground behind his wife. He opened his mouth to say something but his hand worked faster than his mouth could, which normally got him in trouble but was useful in this moment. The goddess ducked as the bolt screamed by her and slammed face first into the titan and she was thrown to the ground violently. As Hera turned around to look, the body had already disintegrated to water and soaked into the ground. Zeus approached his wife, unable to help himself as he put his hand around her waist and grinned, but he was greeted with a soft nudge from Hera's elbow. She frowned, looking over her shoulder briefly as a sigh escaped her lips.

"Gaia will get her back on her feet in no time," she mumbled, unable to hide the pessimism that swept her mood. Zeus merely chuckled as his vanity had got the better of him and he could not conceive a world in which he lost in battle. Stepping forward, his eyes scanned the battlefield and conveniently ignored the obvious losses; instead he focused on Ares and his team still up and fighting Perses, Hephaestus able to hold his own against Helios and their siblings chasing after a fleeing Theia. He could not have been more proud of his family, but his smile disappeared when the saddened voice of his wife sighed, "We're losing."

"Losing!" he exclaimed half shocked with a hint of anger. His eyebrows rose high up on his head as he looked to her and motioned out to the field as a pair of arrows soared in the sky up ahead. "I don't think you see the same things I do!"

"Apparently not," Hera replied nearly under her breath, not willing to make too much of an argument out of it. Her gaze followed the pair of arrows that where consistently shooting from overhead. A giant was too slow to jump out of the way and while one arrow narrowly missed him, the other slammed into his forearm. He grunted, grabbing it and pulling it out before picking up a large boulder. Hera looked to the target to see Eros and Psyche, far removed from hand to hand combat. Zeus looked over his shoulder, nodding briefly to the scene before motioning for her to follow. The boulder took off into the air and clearly was not going to reach the pair, missing the top of the mountain cliff by a good few yards. It slammed into the side, causing the wall of rock to shatter in several places but it still held firm. The giant was scolded when the boulder began rolling down the side and back in their direction.

"Come on," Zeus called out as the sky began to rumble again as he stretched his shoulder and flexed his arms. His wife turned to follow but she stumbled when a glint of silver caught her eye. She spun around to glare at the forest and she waited a few lingering seconds. When Zeus reached out to grab her arm, she pulled from him quickly and waved him off.

"Go!" she snapped and took off towards the mountain, unable to shake the terrible feeling that climbed up her spine. She didn't look back as she sheathed her sword, trying to make her journey between the ground and the mountaintop as quick as possible. She only knew of two gods that could disappear in the forests that swiftly and she feared it was not the one she hoped.

Up at the top, Eros stepped forward as he readied his arrow, letting the tip scan the area for the most immediate threat. To his left was Psyche with her arrow drawn, guarding the road to their hideout and stepping back towards her husband.

"Hera's coming," she cautiously announced, unsure if she brought good news or bad. Eros made no noise and movement as he tried his best to keep steady, as his target was extremely distant. He took in a short breath before releasing the arrow and breathed as he did so, still silent on the matter as he awaited the outcome. Grinning slightly when the arrow sliced the ear of the giant approaching Ares from behind, he turned to his wife and tried to see Hera himself.

"Well," he started as if he had some good news on the topic, but when he drew a blank he simply laughed meekly and drew another arrow. Psyche frowned, briefly glancing to him before shaking her head and guarding the base of the entrance. She let her arrow whizz into the sky towards a wandering giant and she reached her hand over her back for another arrow. As her fingers brushed up against the feathers of the next one, she felt a searing pain overcome her fingers and she gasped, pulling her hand back to see red blood gushing from the cut. She spun around to face the forest that was no longer comforting but horrifying, for it hid her assailant and trapped them with no effort. Eros, not aware of the immediate threat, let his arrow go before turning to his wife and he tripped over his words when the bright red filled his sight. He spun around, pulling an arrow and stepping in front of her, but it was too late; another arrow soared out from the darkness and slammed into his shoulder, causing him to slam into Psyche and she cried, falling back and onto the ground.

"Amateurs," a cold voice growled from behind the tree just before another silver arrow was released. This time Eros was able to duck, falling to the ground in an effort to still protect Psyche who screamed out, trying to reach for the arrow embedded in him.

"Leave it!" he called out, pulling out the dagger from his side and reaching it out. Selene chuckled as she stepped out of the forest, slowly drawing her silver zulfiqar, a type of curved sword. It was etched with an ancient language that neither could read nor cared to know in the moment. The titan was extremely pale and her eyes so brightly white it was difficult to look directly into them. Though her lips seem to part for a laugh, there was no lingering smile or even a hint traced. She had no lines on her face either, as if she had never smiled before. Eros gently pushed Psyche back with his left hand as he held his right out with his much smaller dagger, his eyes narrowed and his arm tense. He slowly rose to his feet as the titan approached, awaiting for his sign of ready before sparring. He grunted briefly before shouting out and running forward, sweeping the dagger across to slice at her throat but she maneuvered away from the tip easily. She leaned back, arching her body to keep out of reach while bringing her own weapon forward and slamming the hilt into his gut. He grunted, dropping the dagger and Selene frowned, as if disappointed it was over so quickly. She dropped the sword and grabbed his neck, pulling him in as she jammed her knee into his gut and pushed him away from her.

"The pride of Olympus," she mumbled sarcastically as her eyes slowly moved to Psyche, who had her arrow pointed to the titan. Selene tilted her head to the side and opened her arms out wide, taunting the scared goddess. Psyche's eyes flickered to her pained husband and when her fingers moved to release the arrow, she screamed out in shock when Hera was nearly hit with it instead as she tackled Selene from behind.

"Hera! Oh, I'm - I'm sorry!" she stumbled, sliding forward on the ground but she was ignored as the two wrestled. Selene barred her teeth, hissing at the Olympian queen when she had her foot on her stomach and she kicked her off. Hera rolled backwards and pulled her sword out, sneering at the titan as the sky above began to rumble. Selene had no need to look above, knowing the threat by sound and she slipped back into the trees for shelter. Eros was finally back on his feet, grabbing the dagger as he made to his way to Psyche and Hera faced the trees, backing up to the couple.

"Don't speak, don't breathe," Hera immediately warned and it was no idle advice; suddenly her own breath seemed to stop and Eros followed suit. In Psyche's panic, she made a small sound but her husband clasped his hand over her mouth immediately after. Hera had her bent arm out with her sword at the ready, her eyes intensely staring into nothingness. Eros tried to keep Psyche as close behind the goddess as possible and he would have drawn his own arrow, if he thought he could do it silently. When finally the snap of bowstring was heard, Hera was able to react quick enough to use the sword as a shield. The arrow clanged on the sword's edge but it wasn't the arrow that was meant for the attack; Selene was already charging from the woods, her zulfiqar pointed to Hera's heart.

The goddess dropped her sword to put her hand out, dodging and snaking her arm underneath to grab the wrist that held the sword. Using Selene's momentum against her, Hera heaved the moon titan up into the air. Pushing her up above her head, she meant to send the titan hurling down the mountainside but Selene was too fast; she jerked her body quick enough that Hera lost full control. Selene arched her back to see what little options she had and when she slammed her sword down, Psyche let out a painful cry. The tip of the sword had pierced her upper chest near her shoulder and went all the way through, pinning her to the ground and saving the titan. With her hands on the hilt, her body continued to fall but the sword was now firmly planted and only jerked a bit when Selene's body slammed against the side of the cliff. Psyche screamed worse at this pain, for the movement of the sword in her body was worse than the strike. Eros let out a cry of shock and Hera spun around, her eyes widening at the horror and she hesitated; stuck with the decision of saving Selene to aid Psyche, or ending the enemy at her expense was not a choice Hera was ready to make. Eros didn't have that dilemma.

When he realized Hera wasn't moving, he reached forward and put both hands on the blade near the hilt. Cutting himself immediately upon squeezing, he only flinched and grunted as he pulled upwards and Psyche's screaming worsened. She blindly reached a hand out which landed on his thigh and she squeezed tightly, hoping the support would give her security or release, to which it did neither. The searing pain of the muscles felt like she was being cut by an amateur butcher and the sound of the sword against her collarbone was all encompassing; she could no longer even understand what was going on around her. She didn't hear Hera yell at Eros to stop, nor see his face as he grimaced to pull the sword from her. She didn't even realize Selene was still hanging on next to her head, dangling by the sword and swaying from Eros' attempts. All she could see was the sky as her voice became a separate entity, voicing her pain while she felt isolated in it. The blue of the sky seemed to tint slightly, once towards purple and now to a faint red. The top of the sword was a small bug on her screen, waving in several directions but as it came loose from her body, she closed her eyes and wailed from the exposure to the cold air.

"Eros, STOP!" Hera screamed but it was too late; the sword had been ripped from Psyche's body and now Selene was tumbled down the mountainside with it, any screams or noises deafened by Psyche's. Eros didn't take the time to look down the side and instead placed a hand on the wound, immediately entwining their blood from his cuts but he turned to Hera with a foul look on his face.

"Get Apollo!" he barked the order, not concerned with hierarchy in the moment. Luckily neither was she, but her horrified face showed she knew something he didn't. Beckoning Iris to her, Eros turned back to Psyche and leaned forward, placing his forehead on hers. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry. It'll be okay soon."

"Bring Apollo up here now," Hera mumbled and Iris blinked, wondering why the sense of urgency was lost on the goddess, but she nodded all the same and took off into the air.

"I -" Psyche breathed heavily, unable to do anything to dull the pain. Breathing intensified the wound through movement, but not breathing caused it to sting more. She locked eyes with Eros and seeing in them he did not know, she let out a small whine as her eyes began to tear up. "I'm dying."

"You can't," Eros quietly laughed at the notion, running the tips of his fingers that were still relatively dry through her hair. "You can't die, remember?"

At first only a single tear squeezed out the side of her eye and it rolled down her stinging face. She clenched her jaw from a new pain that coursed through her body and she closed her eyes, trying to bear it silently. She shook her head, knowing the pain was fatal without ever having felt it before. Eros had a lingering smile from the notion, but he paused this time, staring at his silent wife a few seconds before looking over his shoulder to Hera for Apollo. The goddess looked to her side, frowning down at the battlefield before looking back to the pair.

"Right?" he whispered for confirmation, suddenly feeling like the pair knew something he didn't. Hera opened her mouth, but nothing came at first; her eyes told him she was horrified at the words she was choking back and he grabbed Psyche's hand, shaking his head. "No. No no."

"Eros," Hera finally pushed her voice to make a sound and she stepped forward to come to his level. Reaching out, she placed a hand on his back but he didn't look back at her; she frowned, looking at the ground before speaking again. "Her body has rejected the apple. She's mortal again."

"No!" he snapped as he squeezed her hand and Psyche breathed in sharply, causing him to immediately relax it again. Shaking his head more vigorously this time, he was now staring at the wound more seriously this time. "G-get Apollo. He can save her."

"He can't return the gift," Hera quietly tried to explain but Eros snapped, yelling out in frustration.

"APOLLO!" he screamed to the battlefield and Psyche whined, causing him to lean forward and apologize. "I'm sorry. We'll .. I'll find him," he whispered to her and she now squeezed his hand.

"Don't leave me," she sobbed and closed her eyes, causing the tears that had been forming now to free flow down her face. She let out a groan, tensing up both hands and pressing her feet into the ground. 

"Okay," Eros whispered, nodding and looking around at her wound as if a cure would somehow come to him. He let out a small whine, uncomfortable in this moment and unsure exactly what to do. "You ... Psyche, you can't die. You can't." The words were the same as before the meaning had suddenly shifted; the simple word of 'can't' had now morphed into a deep sadness, now meaning he couldn't be without her. "You can't..." 

"I ..." Psyche tried to reply but her breathing suddenly took over, causing small and shorts breaths. Her chest was moving quickly and Eros stood up to relieve any pressure he was putting on her. Frustrated, he turned back to Hera who was still at his side and searched her face for answers, but sadly she was blank.

"What do I do?" he demanded, causing her to look to him and she frowned.

"You should know better than I," she replied quietly and then stood up, grabbing her sword and turning to guard them from further interruptions. Eros' eyes grew wide as he stared at the spot where she said the words and now his eyes filled with tears, knowing this moment. He had seen in thousands of times before, spoke about the beauty and frail life that mortals led. He had always thought that love burned more brightly in moments like this without ever fully understanding what it meant to live it. Though he knew the steps the mortals took, he found difficulty in finding the words himself. Turning to Psyche whose eyes were opened once more, she searched his face for comfort as she endured the failing of her body and suddenly he knew how to do it. Leaning forward with a small smile, he rubbed his thumb against her cheek.

"I love you," he confessed quietly and he put a finger on her lips as she tried to reply. Shushing her quietly, he settled into his seated position better as he blinked through the tears. "I, uh ... I was writing you a poem... I thought I'd have more time..."

Psyche's lips flickered in a small smile that was fleeting but noticeable. "I want ... to hear it," she stammered breathily, trying hard to maintain a quiet and steady breathing pace.

"Okay," he smiled despite the blood was the pooling in her mouth and the hand he held was turning cold. A few tears rolled down his cheeks, which he removed with the back of his hand, embarrassed for her to see him like this. She smiled as best she could reassuringly but he looked up for a moment, away as he tried to recall the words and the irony of the poem began to sting before he spoke the first word.

"Once, before I knew the end, before I knew of loss and pain, I loved you selfishly. I knew not what you meant, or what it meant to be without you. But I vowed to travel the world, and find the words to sing: I traveled the mountains, the oceans, the deserts and the forests. I've seen the best, the worst, the beautiful and terrible. But the words to express my love for you have been impossible to form. No beauty on earth forms the words, for none of it matches your own. I loved you selfishly ..."

He stopped in the poem, not because it ended there but because Psyche's grip on his hand suddenly released. Her face lost all the tension from the pain as it looked like she slipped into a peaceful nap. Eros paused, staring at her blank face and pale features, searching on her somewhere for a sign of life; a breath that indicated this was only the sleep again, a flinch that meant she was dreaming. He didn't realize he had stopped breathing simultaneously with her, as if when he breathed again she would too. Despite her lost grip, he held firmly onto her hand as now his entire body began to tense up. He shook slightly as he leaned forward, placing his warm forehead on her own, which was losing heat quickly. He whispered at first, something Hera could not hear but as she turned around to face them, he grew louder. It was a wail that was indistinguishable in words though expressive in pain.

It felt more difficult to hear this than Psyche's screams from the sword; no physical torment could match the severity of emotional trauma. His voice grew louder and clearer and she realized he was saying no, the only word that expressed his loss, pain and near inability to handle it. Hera bit her lip as she tried to think of something to say, but she had no words. He suddenly lifted his head to the sky and screamed out the word, loudly now without holding back as his wings fluttered from the tension and his body quivered. His voice carried over the field, echoing through the caverns and walls of the mountains. It was easily recognizable and even gave pause to several battles. Hera cupped a hand over her mouth, choking back any sounds or tears she could and turned away from it. She closed her eyes as his cries permeated the area and she silently wondered if Olympus itself could hear him.


	42. Chapter 41: The Storm, Part Three

Helios and Hephaestus had been locked in one-on-one battle for what felt like hours. The titan was not skilled in close combat like the smith god was and thus when they were too close, he would heat up to try and drive his enemy away; Hephaestus only grinned and endured it. The two of them were strange opponents for the titan was swift and powerful at a distance while Hephaestus was slow and strong close up. It was part of the reason they had been stuck fighting each other for so long, for Helios continually would back up, trying to gain advantage by the arrow while the lame god kept pursuing him, hoping to strike him hard with the war hammer.

Lost in their own world, they had wandered off the main field elsewhere, now fighting amongst the trees which did not put either of them in a comfort zone. Helios was walking backwards, pulling arrows from his quiver and launching them at the limping god who used his wrist guards to block them. He carried the war hammer in his left hand and his right protected his body as he slowly made his way towards the titan. Helios grunted as he backed up into a tree and he turned briefly, glaring at it as if it jumped in his way and continued backing up. He had a slight limp by this point on his shin where Hephaestus had managed to land a hit and it had disadvantaged him greatly. He was running at half his pace, though it was still faster than the smith god, and unable to perform his usual acrobatics without putting himself through severe pain. To his right, the titan saw a clump of trees that would wall him off for a few good seconds and he took it, dodging into it to catch his breath and think of another plan. Hephaestus raised an eyebrow and stopped advancing, reflecting for a moment on what he could possible accomplish there and he moved to his right, hiding behind a large tree as well.

"This is pointless," Helios cried out loudly, hoping diplomacy might solve their pesky situation. He paused, listening for a response or movement from the heavy-footed god but there was only silence. The titan frowned, scouting out the area around him while bending down to rub his shin. "This will never end."

As Helios turned around the corner to peek out, he heard two things happen simultaneously: the first was the movement of Hephaestus. His foot landed on a pile of leaves and a stick, or something close to it, for it snapped under his weight. The second was more difficult to hear but he knew the sound all too well; it was the snap of the bowstring and now the soaring of an arrow in the air. Confused, he turned to face it stupidly and was greeted by the golden tipped arrow that in a split second was lodged into his shoulder. He clenched his jaw immediately, holding back any sound that would give away his position to the smith god, for Helios knew this was a different but familiar opponent. He reached a hand up to grab the arrow from his shoulder as he bent down, but apparently the archer was in a clear position because another arrow struck his forearm. Helios was still able to remain silent still, grimacing and doubling over in pain. He could still hear the advancing steps of Hephaestus and he turned to his left, trying to find a more hidden spot and as he started to crawl, another arrow came soaring through and slammed into his heel. It had been the final straw, breaking his silence as he let out a cry of pain and fell to the ground. He put his hands out to push himself up, but Hephaestus was already standing over him and the hammer slammed into the small of his back. The titan let out a muffled cry as his face was implanted into the ground. Hephaestus grumbled something before lifting the hammer again and slammed it into the back of Helios' head.

"I had him, you know," the smith god announced loudly as he pulled his weapon from the titan's head. The blonde hair was now flooded with golden blood, but it was quickly being covered by the dirt around him. The ground had softened during the impact, causing Helios' head and body to be absorbed into it and, like quicksand, he was slowly being taken in. Hephaestus backed up, knowing Gaia's mercy could quickly turn to wrath. A few feet later, Helios was gone and Artemis emerged from the darkness of the forest.

"I know," she smiled slightly as she positioned her bow on her back. Hephaestus' face immediately contorted into confusion at her presence, for the arrows that landed on Helios were those of Apollo's. His eyes moved over the quiver on her back, seeing the menagerie of arrows he had crafted for both her and her twin and she shrugged slightly, looking over to where the titan's body had been taken. "He wanted a shot at him but Iris called him away, so I took over. But Helios didn't need to know it was me."

Hephaestus opened his mouth to reply but the pair was silenced by an eerie sound; Eros' cries had finally echoed into the forest. Artemis' eyebrows furrowed in confusion but Hephaestus made the connection between Apollo's hail and the cries of pain. He silently turned back from where he came and starting limping out to the battlefield to see where he could be of use. The huntress looked around the area first, eyeing the sinkhole that had been Helios and looking for any remaining hint of threats before breaking out into a run after Hephaestus. She emerged out of the forest first, nearly running into the line of fire between Themis, Nemesis and Asteria.

"Whoa," Hephaestus warned as he reached a hand out, pulling Artemis back by her quiver and she followed his lead, stepping away in time for Nemesis to swing her oversized sword down. Asteria parried it quickly, causing the large blade to strike at the ground rather than her and she continued moving backwards, fending off the pair with ease. Should it have been anyone else that had pulled her, the huntress might have delivered a terrible glare but Hephaestus' nature was so simple and kind that she knew not to take offense to it. She even stepped back again, now standing shoulder to shoulder with him and giving them the opportunity to see the battles for what they were.

Asteria was a master at the sword; each movement was swift and simple, like she was dancing but with little effort. Her arm was tense with the power behind each blow but her body was able to dodge and maneuver easily. Themis and Nemesis were no amateurs, but their combined efforts were not enough to even land a strike on the titan. She was too fast, working at a speed unseen by Artemis or Hephaestus and though they knew better than to marvel at an enemy, their silence stares gave away their awe. As the titan continued to back up, the pair noticed she was backing into a more terrifying battlefield, though it was unknown whether such was the plan. Behind her was her husband Perses, the ancient titan of destruction who was keeping Ares and his crew consistently bruised and busy. The area in which they fought was easy to pinpoint, as there was no more grass and large ditches where bodies had been pummeled into the ground or a weapon had landed. Much further off into the distance were Zeus and Eurybia, marked by the mix of splashing water and lightning. Artemis took a step forward to try and find a place where she was needed, but she turned to the left and pulled her arrow instead. Hephaestus grunted, lifting his hammer but dropped it immediately when a bloodied god came stumbling out of the bushes.

"Hermes?" Artemis asked as her eyes widened slightly at the blood and he blinked at the pair before looking down at himself and grinning.

"Don't worry. It's not mine," he said confidently.

"Where is Apollo?" the huntress moved on quickly, easing the arrow out of the bow and putting it back in her quiver.

"Ah," the messenger looked up to the sky, turning slightly to his left as he eyed the mountaintop where he had last seen the god in question. "He was trying to console Eros."

"Why?" Hephaestus questioned as he and Artemis connected the statement with the cries they heard moments before.

"Psyche's dead," Hermes nearly mumbled. Of all the messages he had given over the centuries, death was usually the more rare on his lips. There was a certain kind of passion or lack therefore needed in such a message and he was not of the right mind to do either, so he had attempted to avoid the topic all together. However, between receiving the news from Hera and now, he had already spread the word several times. Unfortunately, repeating himself did not make the news any easier to take or give. Artemis' eyes widened greater than when she saw the blood on him and she looked away, her face frozen in a shock that was unreadable. The smith god lifted a hand to scratch at his jaw, seemingly unaffected by such information, which did not surprise Hermes in the least.

"Who got her?" the smith god suddenly asked, causing both Hermes and Artemis to stare at him for a moment. Despite his lacking sympathy, the huntress was also curious and turned to Hermes.

"Selene," he replied, causing Artemis to sneer in annoyance; she immediately tensed up and regretted not taking the titan out when she had the chance. Turning out to the look for her, Hermes reached a hand out to stop her. "Don't bother, Gaia has her."

"Well what do we do?" she demanded of him in a rushed tone, annoyed suddenly by his calm nature. He opened his mouth to reply but when he heard a noise from behind, he looked over his shoulder and stepped back.

"I don't know. Ask Athena, but I've got to go," he quickly answered as he looked for the clearest opening between trees in the forest. "I've got a very angry titan trying to follow me."

With a flash of a grin and jump into the woods, the messenger was gone but his presence was still audible. There was a shout of a female voice, Artemis recognizing as Phoebe, and a consequential zapping sound. Hephaestus squinted into the forest to try and make due of the commotion but before he knew it, Artemis was diving into the forest to follow. The smith god adjusted his shoulder in a shrugging manner before turning to the field and looking for Athena – which turned out to be much easier than expected. The war goddess was atop a small hill, staring down at the battles with a concerned expression frozen over her face. She seemed lost in her thoughts, for nothing was catching her attention from her expressionless stance. Hephaestus took his time marching up the hillside, glancing at some of the battles in the meantime. Deimos was tossed into the air by a landed blow from Perses, causing him to roll as he hit the ground and a tree stopped his momentum. The smith god's eyes lingered as he looked for a sign of movement, but as he disappeared up the hillside, he had yet to see the son of Ares get up.

His loud footsteps most likely alerted Athena to his presence, but she still did not move from her position. All the while he climbed up to her and even standing shoulder to shoulder with her, she did not flinch. Once Hephaestus finally looked at her, he could plainly see her eyes jumping around and lingering on certain titans. The bulky god frowned, looking out at the battlefield; it was smart to have her strategize while they fought, to update everyone and give new orders. He recognized she was holding back fighting to keep this strategy up but as members were floundering and falling, she was losing the capacity to order or plan without imagining herself down there. He could see the tension in her back and neck, as if in any second she would jump down there and join them. The pair stood there for several minutes in silence, observing the battlefield and barely moving. Hephaestus finally cleared his throat as Asteria struck Themis to the ground. Athena finally flinched, her nose curling up and her head tilted up as she took in a quiet breath. The smith god pointed a dirty finger to Asteria as he leaned in to the war goddess.

"She wears layered armor," his rough voice seemed to mutter at first. "The first connects on her back but the second does on the sides, hiding the first's chinks. It's made of amorphous silica plasma –"

Athena abruptly turned to him and he grinned slightly.

"Starlight glass," he put more simply and Athena nodded curtly, ignoring the humor in the situation. "It's one of the strongest and most rare materials. There's no known defect unless made incorrectly – which it's not. The only way past it is where it connects, but she's made sure that's not a problem. So you're going to have to strip her down."

Athena narrowed her eyes at Asteria as the titan easily dodged Nemesis and proceeded to slam her hilt onto the back of her head. The goddess nodded with a slight hum, waiting to hear more instructions.

"On her left side is where the armor connects, held together by a more fallible material. She has tied thick leather together, probably from minotaur or hydra skin. She had it tucked in there but it's fallen out. Cut that and you expose her back in the under armor."

Athena nodded as a faint smile spread across her lips and she turned to leave, but Hephaestus called out to her and she paused. Spinning around to face him, he stepped forward and pulled her sword from her sheath.

"Her sword is off-balanced," he said in a serious manner, holding the sword out to his right and pointing the blade towards the ground. "The hilt isn't heavy enough to work with the glass of the blade. She has learned to compensate for it, rather than make a new one, but there is a second delay in pulling the sword after an attack. That is your opening."

Athena eyed the sword as he showed the movements of her sword, mimicking the flaw in Asteria's. When she nodded to show she understood, he passed it back to her and she took it, sheathing it immediately. Her eyes flashed up to Hephaestus and she smiled.

"Thank you," she quickly said spinning around and taking off down the hill. He mumbled something akin to you're welcome before turning around and taking her place at the top of the hill, staring down at the field and watching his family fight.

Athena had headed straight for the challenging opponent, who continually fended off Nemesis and Themis with ease. Drawing her sword as she neared the titan, Asteria turned to see and jumped back from the other two. Themis took the opportunity to stop, pulling back to catch her breath and had to grab Nemesis for her to do the same. They were beaten up and bruised despite their best efforts and any chance to lick their wounds must be taken. Though Nemesis hesitated in stopping, she quickly realized Athena preferred to work this way and shoved her sword into the ground to breathe.

Asteria shouted out with a grin, glad to have a new face and a new challenge as she swung her sword for a parry. Athena's sword was relatively short in length, in comparison to her enemy's but it kept the pair in close quarters of each other. The technical aspects of their fighting was impressive and stylistic; one might think they were the same person, fighting with the same techniques and thoughts for each time one of them would lunge or attack, the other was blocking or moving instantly. Their eyes were intense, staring at each muscle that flexed or moved and knowing what it was trying to do. Athena could see the tension rising up Asteria's neck that meant she was pulling her heavy blade back, but the opening in the arm was still visible. Periodically Asteria could hear Athena hold her breath and she knew the goddess was aiming to lunge, so she could counter or dodge effectively. They were matched in quickness of thought and limbs, neither one of them able to land a hit or get even close.

Their faces were unaltered by any missed hits or lacking opportunities. Athena was still heavily focused on the side of her body where the armor was held together, but did not let her eyes linger, else she would give it away. If Asteria had any plans or ideas to beat the war goddess, she showed no hints and repeated no attempts to anywhere in particular. Each goddess tried to strike where the next opportune moment showed itself, but the other was too fast. When lunging at Athena's hip, Asteria's sword was swung out to the left and upwards. As Athena then tried to spike her sword downward, the celestial goddess spun to the side and recoiled her elbow in to slam into the Olympian's stomach. Instead of the hit landing, Athena stepped forward to press her chest plate against Asteria's stomach and the elbow then missed her side. Athena brought her arm down, locking the titan's arm against her body and she twisted her leg around the front to trip her. She pulled against her leg, trying to get her to fall forward but Asteria's grabbed Athena's neck with her other hand and pulled her over her head so they rolled to the ground together. Feeling the force, Athena moved with it, tucking and rolling with the titan underneath her and springing up to her feet when she landed on the other side. She spun around to see Asteria already on her feet and moving in for a strike, but Athena sidestepped her easily.

The minutes dragged on as they continued to tango with weapons, trying and failing continuously. To anyone watching, such as Hephaestus, it looked like two masters of chess forced to move as quickly as possible. Each new attack, step, motion or breath gave away their next move and they were forced, in a matter of seconds, to come up with a new plan. Their faces gave away their detailed thought process as they weren't enjoying the moment, not like Ares did, but rather processed everything on an intellectual level. They were overly defensive, attempting to make sure they were never scrapped in the process of trying to land an attack. There was an innate beauty it, laced with a sense of unending frustration.

As Asteria lunged forward, Athena took the moment to grab her wrist and pull her in. The titan took her free hand over her shoulder, slamming the palm of her hand against Athena's jaw who flinched, clenching her teeth together but still held the wrist firm. It had been the first real hit landed by either party, but the Olympian was forced to bear the loss in order to accomplish the first goal. At Asteria's belt was a small dagger she had left sheathed, presumably for emergency use. It was at the perfect location for Athena to grab and drag up the side of the armor, severing the leather. The second the blade connected with the material, the titan realized what was happening and brought her knee up into Athena's stomach, who was forced to let the dagger and her wrist go but the job had already been done.

Taking a deep breath as she backed up, Athena tried to regain her breath while Asteria grasped at the armor as it started to fall from her body. She held it against her chest, briefly looking over the cut and suddenly her features moved in the slightest; she growled, a quiet and guttural noise that accompanied the realization that she could do nothing now to keep the layer on. She threw it down to the ground, looking up to glare at Athena and the two ran at each other once more, delving back into their enchanting game. As their feet traced lines in the dirt, it was difficult to tell who was leading and following, but one thing had been apparent: they were heading directly towards the barren field where Ares and Perses still fought.

Ares was one of the last standing of his group, along with a very bloodied and bruised Nike. Her wings were a blend of red and white from the blood, her left arm was broken and hung at her side. She adjusted the sword in her right as she flew high above, watching Ares fight Perses alone and she scanned the field for her fallen comrades. Deimos hadn't returned from being thrown, Phobos had not been able to stand after being pummeled into a hole in the ground and Adrestia was still slumped against the mountainside from being tossed into it. Nike counted herself lucky to still awake despite the sharp pain in her arm though she knew she could not stop fighting until she was among those unconscious. She hovered over the field for a few lingering seconds, eyeing Ares' passionate moves and seeing Perses deflect them; when she caught an opening, she dove down, raise her sword up and clenching her jaw shut from the pain the wind was inflicting on her arm. It looked like she was going to make it, slice at his neck from behind, as he wasn't moving or making an indication that he knew she was there. She grinned to herself as she grew closer and closer, hoping this would be her glorious moment but when the titan wrapped his arm around Ares' neck, trapping him in a headlock, he was able to duck out of the way of her sword. She had barely any time to calculate what had happened before she felt a terrible pain on her back. She fell to the ground, crashing face first and screaming into the dirt as the pain in her arm and now her sliced wing increased ten fold.

In the meantime, Ares took the dagger from his thigh sheath and slammed it into Perses' breastplate, created another dent among the many in his armor. Ares grunted at the fact that it did not pierce the armor and before he could even think to find out what metal it was made of (which, in reality, he wouldn't have known), he was pushed away by Perses who glared at him and pulled the dagger out. Ares grinned slightly, finding deep satisfaction in angering the titan, even when he now stood alone with all his children and entourage fallen around them. The titan now roared angrily, both empowered by the need to strike the god and his annoyances with Ares' grin. With swords slashing one way and the next, the two were back to quickly sparring and intensely attempting to hack at the others' limbs.

The nature of their fight was different in many ways to their female counterparts; their faces were lit with the intensity of their swings and the rush of adrenaline with every near hit. They were enjoying the battle itself, no matter how frustrating it was to not land a single hit. They shouted at each other when a blade was close and roared in defiance when it missed. Ares laughed loudly when he thought the tip of his sword struck at Perses' face, but it was the titan's rumbled chuckle that made him realize he had most certainly missed. Both were deeply involved in their own concentration and battle that they hadn't noticed Athena and Asteria entering their battlegrounds and then halting. As their swords kept still in the air, both of the goddesses were forced to look to the ground and then to the side where the earth was erupting like a volcano of mud. Neither Perses nor Ares stopped until the sky rained this mud on each other's faces and touching his face to smear it, Perses stopped first. The two looked around them to notice all of the fighting had stopped, both wondering and dreading what the grounds could be doing.

Asteria grinned when she caught the first glimpse of what was happening. It was a ghostly pale arm she saw but the skin had not immediately been the clue – it was the shimmering of a bow that followed it. Tumbling effortlessly to the ground, Selene rolled with her momentum and stood up quickly as the mud seemed to drip off her like water, leaving no stains. Athena made no movement as she scanned the titan for signs of her wounds, but her skin was unblemished, as if it had never seen a sharp edge. She was not the only one to emerge from Gaia's womb, as it appeared, but rather she had been accompanied by her twin Helios, Theia, Eurybia and several previously fallen giants. Athena clenched her jaw at the sight as her mind worked out all the possibilities this meant, besides being now heavily disadvantaged. She found it difficult to suppress a sigh or any other sigh that meant she felt defeated, for although she did not feel as such, the odds now felt like a great weight, slowly crushing them.

Ares, it seemed, did not feel as such; he raised his sword into the air, let out a war cry unlike any that had been heard prior and slammed his sword into the unsuspecting Perses' right shoulder. This commotion gathered everyone's attention, particularly those brought forth from Gaia and in the blink of an eye, they all rushed towards him.


	43. Chapter 42: The Storm, Part Four

"Unbelievable!" Athena shouted immediately upon the cry of Perses and she stepped forward to deal with the situation, but realized now she had to deal with an enraged Asteria. Parrying the blade that swung in her direction, Athena's lips were resisting the temptation to sneer, both at her currently opponent and comrade on the field. Ares heard her comment louder than Perses' shouts of pain and rage and only smirked in reply, for now it was too late to debate or argue whether or not it had been a good idea. Launched back into battle, Ares now had to continue to defend against his injured rival, as well as the approaching onslaught of his family and allies.

Perses threw his sword into his left hand, grimacing at the pain such a movement caused him but his speed was not hindered by his new condition. He lunged forward to return the favor, aiming directly for the war god's shoulder but Ares stepped out of the blade's way. He then, by no provocation from the titan, spun around to his backside and stepped away from him, avoiding Selene and Helios' arrows by seconds. Athena tried to grab Asteria and swing her into the path of the renegade arrows, but the titan rolled onto the ground and ducked them completely. As Ares swung his arm out to attack, he felt a tug at his elbow and looked as Athena swung him around to face Asteria instead. He blocked the titan's oncoming attack but looked back as Athena charged Perses.

"I can take him!" Ares roared in defiance as Asteria leaned in towards him, trying to push his blade out of his hand. He grunted, lifting his leg and kicked her off of him.

"That's not the point!" Athena retorted quickly in the distinct tone of authority. Ares immediately recognized she was enacting a plan rather than offending him, but it made no difference. Disgruntled that he would not have the face-off he desired with the ancient titan, he shouted to the titan's wife instead and charged at her, swinging his sword wildly in the air. Asteria backed up for a second, thrown off by his intense and sporadic style, but was still able minded enough to dodge, then block his attacks.

From the other side of the field, the rest of the Olympians were attempting to intervene before Ares and Athena could be overwhelmed. Zeus had hurled bolt parallel to the ground and it cut off the advancing team, delaying them several seconds – enough time for Hermes to dash out of the forest and strike at the heel of a giant. The bellowing cry turned Selene's attention and saw the tail of a feathered shoe before he disappeared completely, running into the shade of the trees. The pale titan glowered as she changed courses and pursued the rogue into her domain, meeting up with Phoebe in the process.

The two titans were of the same nature; ancient titans of the moon, they were pale skinned and cold to the touch. Phoebe, however, was smaller than her counter part and more animalistic. She had fangs when she hissed, strange white eyes that matched no immortal or animal in shape and frail looking arms. She looked more like the prey than the hunter, however despite her stature and appearance, she commanded great power and respect. When she put her hand up to stop their motion, Selene obeyed without hesitation. Phoebe adjusted her shoulders and rolled them forward as she began to hunch over and squat down in the middle of the forest. Selene pulled an arrow and kept alert around them, listening to every rustle and twig in their vicinity. Phoebe grabbed a portion of the dirt and rubbed it between her fingers, carefully feeling each clump roll between her appendages, connecting and communicating with the earth.

"He hunts us not," she announced carefully and her eyes snapped into attention westward. "He seeks to aid them and leads us astray."

"Let me catch him," Selene replied as she lowered her arrow, but she was met with a hiss. Phoebe opened her mouth, baring her teeth as she stood to her feet and stepped towards the younger titan, looking up to her yet still held a commanding presence.

"You think I cannot? Or that where I failed, you shall succeed?" Phoebe snapped, causing Selene to clench her jaw and stand still in silence. For a few lingering seconds as the two stared into each other's eyes, Hermes stood impeccably still, both frozen by the awkward moment and refusing to make noise that would turn their rage onto him. Finally, Selene averted her eyes and thus backed down, causing the shorter titan to relax her shoulders. Phoebe adjusted the strap of her quiver on her shoulder, sniffing the air in victory as her eyes scanned the premise. When her back was facing Selene, she stepped forward and cleared her throat. "Go back. I will continue here."

Selene, offended, opened her mouth to retort but stopped herself before even a breath could pass her lips. She tilted her head down, semi-nodding before turning around and taking off back towards the battlefield. Meanwhile Phoebe hunched over completely, one hand touching the ground again and she sat there motionless, staring into the dirt. The messenger god was still amongst the bushes, hiding within the shadows of the trees, unwilling to move first. Any noise would cause another chase and since his goal was merely to keep this powerful titan off the field, this silent standoff was achieving it just the same. His eyes darted around, making sure their argument had not been a ruse to divert his focus; his assumption had not been too far from reality.

The ground beneath him shifted suddenly and he let out a cry, causing Phoebe to dart in his direction. He was being sucked down into the dirt, kept their for easy prey. He tried to pull his feet out when suddenly the air thickened around him as he felt pressure from everywhere caving in on him. He heard a popping sound deafened his left ear and felt a different presence. As Phoebe let out a shrill laugh and jumped in the air, Hermes' feet were pulled from the dirt beneath him and the disembodied voice of his new best friend whispered in his ear, "Run, you idiot."

Erebus released Hermes from his grasp, causing him to tumble to the ground and Phoebe sailed overhead, missing him completely. He scrambled on the ground, trying to rid himself of the sudden quicksand below him and his shoes kicked into action, putting him inches above the ground and flying him into the air. The titan rolled easily on the ground, spinning around to howl at the god and take off after him. Hermes could hear the formation of the dirt and he pieced the puzzle together; Gaia was joining the effort.

"Erebus, you traitor!" the primordial goddess screamed into the air and the ground beneath cowered under her rage. The earth shifted here and there, causing potholes of sorts and sudden hills. Hermes, now landing on the ground to gain more momentum, dodged these traps as best he could, but the length of her powers appeared limitless. He tripped over a hill, causing the chasing titan to gain several inches and he turned over his shoulder to see a horrifying, but incredible move: she jumped up, kicking her foot from one tree to land her other on the next. She used the surrounding trees, kicking off of them to avoid the ground and gain on him. He resisted the urge to shout out how impressive that was and instead focused his efforts on disappearing from her sight. Stealing her move, he jumped off and used a tree for the momentum to take off into the air, hoping to hide amongst the branches of the trees or, better yet, to soar high above. Phoebe paused in her motions, letting her foot slam onto a tree and the other remained on one. Balancing her feet between two trees, she hovered in a solid state enough to pull her bow and an arrow, aim and release it towards the soaring god. She grinned when it struck, even though he continued flying and disappeared from her view.

"Shit," Hermes cursed as his hand flew back to feel the arrow embedded in his back. He could feel the warm blood running from his back to his legs and dripping off on the forest below him. Wounded in such a serious place, he refused to go back and face her, even if that meant risking she would join the main battle. He was of no use to his family like this; turning to the right, he flew off towards the hill where he last saw Apollo, hoping his brother was still tending to the grieving Eros.

A drop of his blood left his shin and plummeted below like an isolated raindrop seeking the earth. Instead, it landed on the forearm of Hades, who had been approaching Hephaestus prior to this sudden distraction. He pulled the reigns of the chariot, looking at the cold liquid on his arm before looking up and seeing a fleeing Hermes. Anticipating his assailant, he stepped off the chariot and waved his hand away, causing the horses to descend into the ground once again. Hades slowly began approaching the forest as he put his hand on the hilt of his sword. He had no concept of who it could be but his left hand prepared himself as he reached up and grabbed what looked like nothing upon his head. His thumb and index finger were perched an inch or so above his forehead and when it was Phoebe who emerged, he grinned and pulled the helm down, causing him to vanish from sight. The titan slammed her feet into the ground and stopped, staring at the spot where the god once stood. Crouching down, she investigated the ground as she held her breath, listening for his approach. He was out of sight, but his step was still heavy and detectable; she howled out as she pulled an arrow and shot it in his direction. With advantage of sight, he dodged it but had lost the element of surprise. She began shooting one right after the other, aiming in his general direction and following the heavy steps that sunk into the dirt. It didn't take long for him to realize her eyes were following him and he jumped back into the stealth of the forest.

Phoebe paused, holding an arrow steady, pointed in his general direction and waiting. She listened to the rustling of the branches, her eyes scanning the movement of the leaves and when she was sure, her fingers released it and the arrows screamed towards its victim. She grinned when the arrow stopped in midair and she started walking in its direction – however, she froze in her step when Hades pulled the helm from his head with his left arm to reveal his right was holding the arrow in the air. Her grin was washed from her pale features but she was now in close enough range for hand-to-hand combat. She pulled two daggers from different areas on her body and let out a hiss of some sorts as she ran at the god. Hades dropped the arrow, shifted his body to his right to avoid her stabs and grabbed her wrist. Clenching and twisting, Phoebe yelped out in pain as that hand dropped her dagger but her other arm swung around to strike. Seeing her arm move, he pushed her away from him, extending his arm to slam her into a tree and release her wrist. He stepped back and pulled the large sword from its sheath for the first time since the battle had begun. Clean and shiny, he pointed the tip directly at her and awaited her to regain composure.

Phoebe locked eyes with her opponent as she took to her feet and did not break the contact even as her hand moved out to grab the fallen dagger. When she had it in hand, she then froze in her crouched position, staring up at the dark god whose only movement had been his blade tip following her. The time in which they stared each other down had only been measured by their limbs becoming sore from their strained positions. It was Phoebe who broke it first, pushing off from the ground to sweep both of her arms at Hades' knees. The god swung the sword upside-down and both hands on the hilt, he swung it to the left and then right, blocking both her attempts. With her chest momentarily exposed, he slammed the blunt end of the blade against her and she took the brunt of it, having not had the time to find an escape. The wind was knocked out of her as she let her body roll back with the hit. Hades took the opportunity to lift the sword and he brought it down, slamming it into her thigh. The sound that erupted from the titan near deafened him, as it sounded like several sounds emitted from her simultaneously. He heard the scream of a goddess but the whimper of a wolf and the screech of a small rodent. She put her hands on the sword to try and pull it from her leg, but the edges only cut her hand for it was too heavy and firmly implanted for her to lift. She then turned her ghostly eyes to Hades and hissed, baring her teeth as she stuck her bleeding hands into the dirt. Put off by her sounds, he kicked her straight in the throat, both silencing and knocking her out. Satisfied, he pulled the sword from her leg whistled, calling forth his chariot from the underbelly of the earth once again.

He ran at them, jumping onto the chariot and grabbing the reigns as they proceeded to bolt off towards the mountain where Hermes had fled. Undoubtedly he was looking for Apollo for aid, but that god was now locked into battle with his sister against their predecessors. He snapped the reigns to gain speed, but the horses buckled suddenly, causing the chariot to dip to the right and Hades steadied himself as best he could. Leaning over to see the problem, the ground was bowing and becoming loose.

"Hades, down!" Poseidon bellowed, causing the dark god to duck in the chariot as clumps of hardened dirt flew over his head like screaming bullets. Demeter waved her arms in the air, causing a wall of dirt to raise and take the impact of the tiny weapons. Hades stood to nod, thanking his brother silently before calling out to the dark steeds and they took off, continuing towards the mountain path. Theia briefly glanced his way, but enraged by Demeter's similar command of the earth, the titan pressed her hand out in a stop motion and causing the wall of dirt to explode. Demeter crouched, putting her hands over her head to withstand the debris while Poseidon flicked his wrist to call forth the water from deep within the ground. Theia looked down, feeling the ground bend to a foreign will and as she began to step out of the way, the geyser erupted beneath her feet and she evaporate into mud. Demeter smiled, pushing herself from the ground and began cleaning herself off as she walked to the water god; however, she paused in her step, looking down to the ground as she felt an uncomfortable change in it. Poseidon ran at her, grabbing her wrist and pulling her towards him. She collapsed against him as he wrapped his arm around her waist and jumped, carrying her up onto the geyser as Theia erupted the ground where Demeter had been standing only seconds ago. Theia screamed in aggravation as she realized she had missed and Demeter, just about to thank Poseidon, was suddenly separated from him by the powerful force of the gushing waters. Poseidon's face changed, confused as to the water's behavior and more so when he was pushed from the geyser as well.

"Not **her**!" the water wailed in a familiar tone as a portion of the geyser followed him to the ground. The water splashed on his chest and defied gravity, forming up into the body of Amphitrite, enraged and punching her husband. "That was the deal!"

"Am –" he started but found his mouth full of water from her punch. He grimaced, trying to gain composure over the sudden situation and reached out, grabbing her wrist. "Amphy! Enough!"

"It was the DEAL!" she shrieked, struggling against his grip; she even attempted to turn to water to escape him, but now focused, he could force her to stay in her current materialization and it served only to anger her more. She screamed wordlessly as she fought against him, briefly causing Demeter to turn to the struggling pair, but the goddess was forced now to keep Theia occupied on her own. Poseidon grunted, his nose wrinkling up at how much effort she was putting in to escaping him and he rolled over, pinning her to the ground.

"ENOUGH!" he bellowed straight at her face and then let her go, pointing out to the field. "Have you no sense? Look around you!"

"I could have helped! But you wanted –"

"I WANTED _NOTHING_!" he roared over her, the power in his voice calming the geyser and causing it to retreat back into the earth completely. He slammed his fist into the ground near her and she glared at him more, forcibly refusing to cower in the presence of his rage. "I want to live! I want to see my family survive this - that is what I want!"

He pushed himself off the ground, biting back another outburst as he turned to see Demeter fighting Theia alone. He stepped forward to join her but suddenly spun around again as Amphitrite rose to her feet and he pointed back to his struggling companion.

"Your jealously blinds you to what is really important here. Either fight with us or leave – this argument means nothing compared to this." His low voice seemed to be a warning of something more he wasn't saying and when he turned his back to her, Amphitrite swallowed and looked around. Scratching the back of her neck, she felt mildly embarrassed by the moment and stepped towards the fight to help them but her right foot wouldn't move. She grunted, looking down to see her feet turning to water on its own accord.

"What the…" she muttered to herself as she grabbed her leg to pull it out and her hands turned clear as well. She barely choked out a scream when the lower half of her body melted into the ground. Her eyes grew wide as her hands grasped at the ground, struggling to keep herself together but the rest of her succumbed to the beckoning of the ancient water titan and Amphitrite was absorbed in with the rest of the water. Eurybia stood with her feet planted in the ground, calling forth the water from every root while being protected by a cage of water. Hera tried to slam her sword into it, but it only splashed at her and remained vigilant. Zeus had just finished off a giant by slamming him to the ground and then sending a soaring lightning bolt to his chest. The giant was obliterated from existence, with no body for Gaia to heal and so he turned to Eurybia. As the sky roared, awaiting his next command and his arm raised into the air, he heard the laughter of a very familiar immortal and he turned to his left to see her forming from the ground.

"You cannot win, my sweet one," Gaia began in a calm, soothing voice as she put her hands out for a hug. She had a sickeningly sweet smile on her face, like she was happy to see her family altogether no matter the circumstances. "Let us finish the mortal world and begin anew."

Zeus glared at her attempt to embrace and should it not have been so insulting, he might have laughed at her offer. But a proud god he was and could only take her every word and action as an offense. He struck his arm into the sky again and called forth the bolt, refusing to entertain her in parlance and he extended his arm, releasing the bolt. Gaia only put her hands up to protect her face but her upper body exploded of dirt. When the bolt settled, her disembodied legs continued standing with the spine sticking up. Zeus grinned at the sight but it did not last long; the earth immediately climbed up her legs and reformed her body, from the chest, to the neck, head and then the arms … the arms that were out again, awaiting that hug from her grandchild with that smile still etched on her face.

Zeus yelled out and the sky replying, the clouds booming in a hideous rage and the god's every muscle seemed to tense up. The lightning simply started pouring out from everywhere; leaving his fingertips or raining from the sky directly at her. But no matter how often they struck, she would simply explode into millions of clumps and reform just as fast. Hera only briefly could see what was happening when she was suddenly engulfed by water and send floating back from the scene. She was only stopped by slamming into the side of a hill where she grabbed a hold of a root sticking out and attempted to withstand the crushing current. She turned her head every which way, trying to breath what little air she had available and her grasp was nearly gone when she was pulled from the water.

"Hephaestus," Hera breathily thanked, coughing a bit of water onto the ground. The smith god put a hand on his mother's back and pointed to Eurybia.

"Her body can morph into water at any moment, so striking her is pointless. You need to switch with Poseidon – he may be able to force her to keep her shape," he simply instructed, blatantly ignoring the formalities of ordering his mother and queen.

"She will be fried by lightning, I just need –" Hera began, annoyed by her son's tone.

"You will not have that chance. Switch with him," Hephaestus ordered more curtly, before turning to Gaia and Zeus. "Her body is only a manifestation of herself. He needs to attack the ground, not her."

"I don't have time to deliver messages!" she snapped, unable to find anything else to say to vent her frustration to him. She turned to see Eurybia approaching and broke out into a run towards Poseidon, begrudgingly following through with the smith god's plan. Alone and without Hermes, Hephaestus had only himself to deliver the message and began his trek out towards the battlefield of exploding earth and light. He yelled out, trying to get Zeus' attention, but the thunder was too loud. He was completely muted by the sky above. He kept walking, avoiding arrows, bolts and water as he did, trying hard to reach the pointless battle before it turned to something much worse. Unfortunately, halfway there, Ares' body collided with the smith god and the two grunted as they fell to the ground. Athena shouted over her duel, yelling at Hephaestus to get out of the way as she parried Perses while walking backwards. Asteria broke out into a run at the two gods and Ares, pushing off of the smith god, met her with his sword. He had a few more scratches on him than before, meaning she had landed hits, but Hephaestus was proud to see her outer layer of armor was gone.

"OUT OF THE WAY!" Athena screamed again, waving her free arm to get Hephaestus' attention and he nodded, stepping back and turned around back to Zeus and Gaia – but it wasn't them that caught his attention. His eyebrows furrowed as something in the sky, fairly distant, was hurling in their direction at an amazing speed. He stepped forward, as if that would get him a better look, and squinted, trying hard to make out what else could possibly make this any worse. After a few seconds of staring and ignoring Athena's demands to get off the field, he stepped forward again and his mouth opened in shock as he recognized the figure.

"…Aphrodite?"


	44. Chapter 43: The Eye

She had adorned herself in armor that had never been worn before. Not even on the battlefields of Troy did she wear anything but her finest silks and gowns. For all intents and purposes, the armor had been made by Hephaestus' hand simply for a ceremonial value, but had been on display in her closet ever since he gave it to her. The smith god frowned at her choice to wear it now, for when he made it, it was under the expectation that she would never truly ride into battle. In fact, the closer she rode in towards him, the more the stress came over his face as he could see how useless it truly was for combat.

The upper half, or chest plate if one could call it that, ended just below her breasts but kept them in perfect form. The epaulettes elaborately decorated her shoulders with beautiful marble wings, crafted in an upward position to emulate a dove taking off to the air. Starting on the left shoulder curving down onto her breast was the carving of a mortal woman, mourning the loss of her love who, on the right hand side, was in love with Aphrodite and laying down gifts at her temple. Below this design was her exposed stomach, just as she requested, which led the eye down to the battle skirt below. Underneath the metal skirt were several layers of white, pink, sapphire, rouge and whatever colors she had demanded from him. The metal parts of the skirt each were decorated with a marble design of an animal of beauty: a dove, a unicorn, a leopard, a Pegasus, and so on. The rest was decorated with intimate details and every piece of it was covered by some design and carving. But the faults of her armor did not stop there.

The worst of it all had been her helmet: the first design had been beautiful, but too heavy, she complained. The second was too tight, the third too boring. By the fourth round, Hephaestus had chosen to use one of the weakest but lightest materials of the immortal world: it was affectionately called Uranus' tears, for it was a light celestial metal carefully bonded with rain. Completely useless as protection, it had been used by the titans for the final layer of decoration and nothing more. So it had been light weight enough to sit on her head and sturdy enough to hold the second pair of marble wings that were fully extended just behind her ears. At her forehead, the helm dipped down a bit where a dove sat kissing its beau. Finally, Hephaestus noticed as she descended onto the field, she was wearing one of her best sandals; they were made of dyed minotaur skin with white ribbon lacing ties up to her knee. He sighed loudly, wondering what exactly she had thought would happen when she arrived and he started walking to meet her, however the closer she came, the sooner he was beginning to see she wasn't slowing down. His eyebrows furrowed as he waved an arm to see if she would slow for him, but suddenly he realized this wasn't Aphrodite simply joining the battle.

Her face was stained with the tears of her pain while her red eyes told the story of her rage. She had a sneer plastered across her lips as she gripped tightly a sword in her right hand and her left held the reigns of the flying horse. Her hair was blowing fiercely against the wind and she slammed her legs into the side of the poor Pegasus, demanding more speed than its best. She looked terrible, like a fearsome, beserking Amazon, coming to annihilate them all and yet her beauty was more potent and powerful than ever before. The smith god's mouth opened slightly as he felt a fear overcome him and the desire to be near her despite it. As she neared the battle, her screaming became apparent and cut through the air of the field like nothing else. Not even Zeus' terrible thunderous roars could deafen her screams and slowly but surely, everyone in the battle began to turn towards her. The Pegasus struck the ground with a potent blow, causing the earth around the pair to explode from the impact but his momentum was not tarnished; he continued flapping his wings and running through the field, easily blowing by the smith god and heading straight towards Asteria. Athena's eyes snapped to attention as she dodged an incoming attack and she turned to Ares, who had already lead the celestial titan into Aphrodite's path. He backed up, leaving her to the mercy of his love and just as the titan turned to see where the terrible noise was coming from, the sword sliced through her neck in an easy stroke; she was finished.

Ares blinked, staring at the body only for a second before a grin spread quickly across his face. He raised his sword into the air and let out a boastful war cry, too proud of Aphrodite to question her.

"Primordial…" Athena whispered under her breath as she was granted a reprieve from Perses, who collapsed to his knees at the sight of his headless wife. Hephaestus, silenced and amazed by Aphrodite's prowess, was still able to hear the goddess and turned to her, giving her a questioning look. Athena snapped her fingers, as if everything suddenly fell into place and she tried to summon him back to battle. "She's primordial!"

"_What_?" Hephaestus asked, but it was too late; Athena was already rallying behind her and summoning everyone else to follow her lead, which was no easy feat. Aphrodite had raged through onto Selene and Helios, who had been dominating Artemis and Apollo in the past few hours. Apollo collapsed into his sister's arms as a thick arrow pierced his shoulder, but Aphrodite flew between the pairs of siblings. Her sword swung across the titans' chests, sliced them on their collarbones and causing their armor to fall from their bare chests. Helios grabbed it, pulling it against his chest while Selene let it fall, refusing to let it bother her while the blood ran down her breasts. When the huntress dared to hiss at the desperate twins, it caught Aphrodite's attention who stopped instantly on the Pegasus. Helios put an arm out, trying to guard his sister but she refused his aid and stepped forward, glaring at the goddess.

Aphrodite slid off of the beast and turned, her eyes intensely staring down the huntress with a burning sense of passion. Artemis even grabbed Apollo's hand, squeezing it tightly as she felt a sting of fear for anyone in Aphrodite's path. Screaming as she burst into a run, Aphrodite raised her sword into the sky and with a great cry, Helios jumped in front of her blow, taking it straight through the chest. Aphrodite leaned into the hilt, pushing the sword further down into him as her face tightened and showed no recognition of what she was doing.

"STOP!" Selene screamed in horror as she wrapped her arms around her brother, wrapping her hands around the blade as her brother was gasping for air. As the titan's hands were sliced from the movement, Aphrodite suddenly paused as her pupils shrunk and she felt a pull back into reality. She glanced between Helios and Selene, trying to reconcile exactly what was happening when Apollo pushed her from them.

"What are you doing!" he yelled, horrified at the violence by her hand. Aphrodite suddenly pulled another blade from her belt, raising it high above her head with a screech as her eyes had returned to their reddened, crazed state and she swung her arm down towards Apollo, but the clang of blades brought her back to reality once again as Artemis had blocked her attempt. Artemis stared at her, slightly horrified and confused as to what exactly was going on, but Aphrodite's eyes gave her no indication of clarity; she stared at the huntress for a few seconds before turning off and leaving as quickly as she had come. She left the four to pick up the pieces of the exchange and she ran to the field where Zeus and Gaia were still locked in their vicious cycle of battle. Hades began to run towards Aphrodite to stop her, but Athena yelled out, motioning for him to get out of the way and he listened, backing up for the goddess that didn't even acknowledge his existence as she ran passed.

Theia had been adequately distracted by Demeter and Poseidon for quite some time, but there was very little they could have done to keep her from noticing Aphrodite. She threw out her arm, dipping the ground beneath the crazed goddess to slow her down but she only jumped over it, her eyes never once moving from Gaia's sight. Theia moved to run at the crazed goddess but Demeter intervened, using her shoulder to slam into the titan and the two tumbled to the ground. Poseidon raised his arms, creating water from the ground to pool from underneath them, keeping them occupied with each other rather than Aphrodite. When Athena caught up to Hades, he began to join her in running after the goddess, but they could only watch the event as it unfolded, much too far away to join her.

"What is going on?" Hades yelled to the goddess at his side, briefly glancing to her to see she heard him. She curtly nodded, awarding him the knowledge she heard, but kept her eyes locked on Aphrodite ahead.

"The primordials are a race all their own," the war goddess loudly replied, calmly and informative. "No other immortals dare challenge them, because their might is different than our own. We have always assumed Aphrodite was made of Ouranus, from his body, making her a titan of sorts – but the sea is not her mother. Cutting him was the first real act of love and _that_ is when she came to be. Aphrodite can match them in battle because she _is_ love."

"What?" Hades replied immediately but Athena did not respond. He understood her perfectly, but the information was just too strange to quickly accept. When he looked ahead, all that was in the goddess' wake was a trail of dust and dirt, flying up as she stormed into Zeus and Gaia's duel. "So she wasn't dying …"

"She was hurting," Athena completed with an affirmative tone, nodding curtly once again. "She could feel love dying all around her and it hurt her. Just like Gaia was never dying from the mortals, just pained."

Hades barely had the time to let it all sink in before Aphrodite reached the battlefield between Gaia and Zeus. The crazed goddess divided the two by slamming her sword into the ground between them and the ground around her exploded into a volcano of dirt and mud. Zeus was knocked back, guarding his eyes with his forearm and Gaia disappeared completely, melting in the ground around her. When the dust began to settle, Aphrodite was simply standing there, her sword still deep into the ground and heaving heavily. Zeus frowned, looking around for his opponent and he stepped towards Aphrodite.

"What are you doing?" he asked fairly calm, ignoring his shock at her strength and sudden ferocity in the battle. The need to protect those he loved was not always potent in Zeus; he preferred the prowess of Hera over the weakness of Hestia, for in battle he had no time to be concerned for those that couldn't defend themselves. It had always been in their best interest and his own to leave them on Olympus, ready to feed and nurture the hurt than try to fight and distract him. Therefore seeing the goddess of love, whose activity in battles had always been limited, in gear and with weapon in hand, he felt the need to send her back home. "You shouldn't be here."

Her hand squeezed around the hilt of the sword as her eyes dug into the ground. She scowled at the ground, biting back any response to him as she stared deeply into the earth, awaiting something besides him. Zeus' eyebrows furrowed as he was mixed with anger and confusion, but as he reached out to grab the goddess, he was pulled from behind. Gaia emerged from behind him and coiled her arms around his chest, grinning as she pulled his face next to hers. Aphrodite spun around quickly and as she went to grab her sword, she found it firm and unmovable. Gaia laughed as she slapped her hand over Zeus' mouth and he tried to yell out, but it was suddenly filled with dirt. He closed his eyes, trying to push it out but she was too forceful; as Aphrodite struggled with the sword, Zeus pushed back against the primordial goddess and the two tumbled back together. It gave him enough of a reprieve to call forth a bolt from the sky and he held his breath, awaiting its sting.

He landed on Gaia who pulled him into the ground with her and though no one else could see it, she had saved both of them from the bolt. The ground took the brunt of the attack and she pushed him from her embrace when the dust settled. He stumbled forward, spitting and coughing out the remnants of the dirt she had shoved down him and she braced herself for more – however, she was distracted by the approaching goddess to her left.

Gaia turned, looking at the empty-handed woman and she hesitated, confused as to what she thought she could accomplish. As Zeus tried to shout, Gaia's right hand flicked its wrist and a wave of earth sent him crashing to the ground. He was still trying to recover from nearly choking on dirt so when the wind was knocked out of him, he paused to recollect him. It was too late to send a bolt – Aphrodite was inches before the earth goddess and without risking her well-being, he could only hope Gaia would have pity on her. Gaia's lips flickered between smirking and frowning, hesitating to take action against the goddess before her who was empty handed and silent; her face, however, was a flurry of rage and pain, as the corner of her eyes were still puffy from her painful state of being. When finally Gaia moved to speak, Aphrodite suddenly broke into action and lunged at her, causing the earthen goddess to gasp in shock as she tried to back away. She felt hands enclose around her and briefly jerked her arms to fight it, but she was too fast: Aphrodite had wrapped her arms around her and tightened her grip, enclosing the gap between them and embracing Gaia into a strong, tight and warm hug. She jerked again, trying to test the strength of her grip but she was unable to melt into the ground or pull away; even Gaia herself could not articulate whether she was physically unable to escape or mentally. Aphrodite's presence was a powerful, warm feeling that caused the earthen goddess to look up to the sky, suddenly missing her husband after many long centuries.

"I'm sorry."

Gaia was dumbstruck; she blinked a few times, her empty hands open and her mouth slightly ajar. She couldn't think clearly as she felt Aphrodite's warm and inviting presence overlapping her judgment. She looked up to the sky, as for the first time in centuries she felt the desire for her husband's presence again; she shook her head, trying to rid her of that nonsense and amidst that and the strangeness of the moment, she became extremely ineloquent.

"..What?" was the only word she could muster.

"I'm sorry," Aphrodite repeated in all earnest; it was no trick and no lie. The goddess meant it completely and Gaia could feel it. Her mouth twisted into a frowned and she closed her eyes, feeling the tears welling up within her. She shook her head, trying to fight the apology for it was surfacing all the emotions she had been filtering into rage. She whispered a no, trying to fight it but Aphrodite then squeezed harder, holding her still in the tight embrace. When she couldn't move or do anything but succumb her emotions, she let out a painful cry, like a moan that increased in volume as it felt better to become louder. The tears leaked out her eyes and rapidly fell down her cheeks as the intensity of her voice grew, until the entire battlefield was still from her cry. Even Perses and Ares were drawn to the deafening sound of Gaia, feeling the raw emotion miles from her presence. Gaia's knees gave out beneath her and though Aphrodite kept her standing, the pair slowly kneeled to the ground; Gaia leaned into the goddess, finally bringing her arms up to wrap around her and hold her back. The love goddess looked up to the sky, her own eyes beginning to glaze from the pain and she brought a hand up behind Gaia's head.

"I'm so sorry," she whispered again as she pulled her head back and kissed Gaia's forehead. "No one will ever hurt you like that again."


	45. Chapter 44: What Victory There Was

The battle hadn't been won. Nor had it been lost. It had simply ended.

Gaia had been sobbing in Aphrodite's embrace as both sides slowly approached, looking for some order or explanation. Zeus had neither to give; he stood staring down the two as his army approached them in a circle and he barely moved when Hera joined at his side. When finally Aphrodite lifted her gaze, the Olympians could recognize her again and she was back as the goddess they knew. Cognitive reasoning was present in her eyes, yet her face was still stern and fierce. She ordered them home, wherever it was, and to leave them alone. And without questioning it, everyone did just that.

Zeus and Hera were the leaders of the crew returning to Mount Olympus, but without a definitive victory, the mood was strange. The nebiaids had gone home to recuperate and the titans had separated and gone back into hiding. Without someone to punish, without something to celebrate besides maintaining their lives, the gods felt emptiness after the battle they had never experienced before.

Some things were the same as before: there was food, drink and a blazing fire in the council chambers for everyone returning home. Ares immediately took advantage of it, popping a grape into his mouth and pouring himself an oversized glass of wine. As the gods began to pile in around the food, Iris tapped on Apollo's shoulder and she whispered the state of several gods, chiefly one Dionysus, a common friend. Immediately the sun god broke into a faster pace, storming through the group and into the halls to find his fallen comrades. Poseidon searched briefly for Hades, but when his wife stepped through the crowds towards him, the thought of his brother vanished. He frowned slightly, stepping towards her and she raised a hand immediately, halting any words he might utter.

"Not now or here," she stiffly said, blatantly holding back much of her feelings for the sake of the group. The sea god flickered a smile, making Amphitrite frown, but as he reached out for her hand, she didn't try to pull away. He gently squeezed and nodded, turning to Zeus and Hera who had taken their seats within the chamber.

"So now what?" he asked loudly, causing the rest of the room to turn towards the pair. Zeus mumbled something under his breath as he straightened himself on the chair and Hera bowed her head, rubbing her temple.

"We wait Aphrodite's return," Athena replied quickly, stepping forward and ignoring the curt look Hera gave her. The war goddess bowed slightly at the waist to Zeus, begging pardon for her boldness before taking off her helmet. "She has come out as a primordial, estranged from us physically but akin to us in culture. She is the perfect liaison between us and the ancient ones and it would be unwise to attempt to move on without her input."

Zeus waved a hand, sighing to himself as he leaned back in the chair, "We have much to speak on and many wounds to attend to. We will await her return before anything diplomatic is discussed."

The room took almost no time to divide in that moment. All seemed to go their separate ways, snagging only bits of the food or a drink as they headed back to their rooms. Poseidon and Amphitrite were the quickest out of there, heading to his seldom used room. Athena nodded her approval before slipping out the door, hoping those returning to their rooms would move a particular goddess out of hiding. As the war goddess maneuvered through the halls, she paused when a door was wide open and silent. It was easily recognizable as Psyche's room and when Athena took another step closer, she was able to smell the fresh scent of flowers. She looked confused for a second until she turned the corner, seeing the room was filled with vases and flowers of mourning. Athena's eyebrows furrowed for a moment, finding the sensation of loss interesting. She stepped into the room, extending a hand out to touch the petals of a nearby vase of orchids. Her thumb and index finger pinched a petal and rubbed its smooth surface as she stared into the room, letting the memories of the goddess flood her. She turned to face the blue tulips that were spread over the fallen goddess' bed.

"They were her favorites," Demeter softly answered the unspoken question and Athena, turning over her shoulder, frowned.

"I don't see the need for this," she narrated, not fully turning to Demeter and instead surveyed the room once more. "Why go to such lengths to adorn her room and perpetuate pain instead of finding a way to bring her back?"

"Mourning the loss of a loved one is foreign to us, my dear," Demeter quietly replied as she turned her fingers out, blooming a cherry red rose. "But it is not useless."

"I will speak with Hades," Athena huffed, adjusting her gear as she turned to face the harvest goddess.

"Hope perpetuates pain too," the elder goddess sighed as she stepped aside to let Athena walk passed. "Just remember that."

The war goddess hesitated before storming out of the room, focusing instead on her original plan to seek and hunt out Hestia. She passed by other rooms where the voices were leaking out, such as Posiedon's who was clearly arguing with his wife or Hephaestus who was working on something metallic, most likely to keep his mind off of the current situation. For the most part, she blocked out questioning any of the sounds or thinking too much on them, trying to keep on her quest, which was proving more difficult than she originally anticipated. Hestia wasn't a goddess you sought out, but rather one that appeared when needed. Nearly to the point of simply calling out for her, Athena was finally distracted by a distant sobbing sound. She placed a hand on the wall, staring down at the ground as she concentrated to find the direction the sound was coming from. She made a sharp right and then left, coming upon Dionysus' room where the door was barely cracked open; she awaited to hear something of use, something to prepare her for what she might be walking into, but only the sobbing continued. When pressed her lips together when she finally opened the door, taking in a short breath when she was presented with quite the scene before her.

Apollo looked over to her, sitting on one of the many settees that decorated the room. He was hunched over, sitting behind Dionysus who was holding his daughter, Khloé, in his arms. It was the wine god sobbing into her chest, holding her as close as his bruised and battered arms would allow. Athena took a step forward, keeping a calm demeanor as she silently requested information from Apollo, who placed a hand on his friend's back. Dionysus paused in his sobbing, the only real indication that he felt him and continued on again. The sun god stood up and walked over to Athena, scratching the back of his neck.

"She'll be fine," he whispered, turning his head to the side as his hand move to now rub his jaw. One of Athena's eyes squinted as the news was not what she expected; she looked over her shoulder to the scene and then back to the god.

"Then why –" she began, but Apollo nodded, cutting her off with a wave of his hand.

"He thought she was gone. He's just working through the emotions. He'll be fine when she finally wakes up," he said with a flare of certainty, the kind of tone the god took when he knew by way of his gift of sight. She believed Apollo's prophetic sight but as she turned to look back at the sobbing Dionysus, her eyebrows twitched upwards. She shook her head suddenly, refusing herself the chance to figure it out and nodded to Apollo as she left. The sun god smiled slightly, avoiding laughing in her or Dionysus' company and returned to his friend's side.

Athena didn't stop walking for a few minutes. She wasn't looking for Hestia anymore, she was simply trying to walk as far away from the crying, shouting or whatever else was going on. The noises were flooding her head and the emotions were difficult to balance. When she reached her own room, she spun around the doorframe and leaned against the wall, pressing the palms of her hands against her face. She had never lost before and by all logical summations, she hadn't; they won, but the celebratory feeling was corroded by this haunting feeling of loss and devastation. This didn't feel like any victory she had known and it was like a foreign invasion to her body. These were not her feelings or thoughts, not as she had come to know them, and she felt betrayed by her own emotions.

She quickly pulled her hands from her face when she heard a shifting noise from within her room and she reached out, grabbing the door and slamming it closed. The sudden action caused Hestia to jump slightly and step back, bowing her head apologetically. Athena blinked, shocked by the convenience and was left wordless.

"You were," Hestia started but was painfully quiet. "looking … for me?"

"Yes," Athena retorted immediately, trying to gain herself back as she straightened her shoulders and stood tall. "I need to know exactly what happened with Aphrodite. She was in no condition when we left and days later emerged a warrior. What changed?"

Hestia's eyes scanned the ground, most likely to keep busy than in search of anything, but when the question was presented, she did not stop. She let her eyes wander, scanning their feet, the rugs, tables and so on. She was searching for _words_, as it were, and Athena feared not even she knew what had truly happened. Hestia stepped back, closing her eyes to calm herself into a better state. When she spoke, she did not open her eyes.

"She said she felt her son losing love," the hearth goddess explained and she brought a hand up to her heart, feeling sympathy even in recounting the event. "She felt ripped from him and his pain consumed her. She said she … had to save us."

When Hestia opened her eyes, Athena was already ripping the door open and out of the room. It made sense, more than anything else she could have thought of, but "saving us" worried her. Aphrodite had never been known as a logical entity; she played by the rules of the moment, diving into her heart and justifying everything in the name of love. Whatever plans she would have or message she could bring back from Gaia was no doubt just as head strong and empathetic as usual. Feeling the explicit need to be there, to counter act whatever would bring them further strife, Athena finally broke out into a run when she knew the goddess was back. The voices were no longer coming from the rooms in the hall but echoing throughout the halls from the council chambers. She stopped running inches before the doorway, entering with a slight huff as the room turned to her. She briefly flashed from Zeus and Hera, to Aphrodite, who was still adorned in her beaten up gear and her face flushed. Athena took a few steps in and Hera leaned on her hand in the chair.

"Aphrodite has convinced Gaia of our certainty in aiding her," the Queen announced to the obviously flustered goddess. She lifted an eyebrow, as if waiting for Athena to comment but when silence was the reply, she continued. "In mourning for the loss of so many, Nyx has covered the world in night. She will use this time to apologize to her sister and gives us the time to plan for ours, and everyone's, future."

"I see," Athena replied with a nod, glancing to Aphrodite who seemed to smile in the slightest. The war goddess was unsure if she was annoyed by the solidarity of her diplomatic skills or her enjoyment of success, but she knew how it felt.

"Hermes," Zeus called forth and the god, now healed and bandaged by Apollo, stepped forward with ease and bowed. "When the night has lifted, you will fly to Rhea and deliver a message to the mortals. Since we have no concept of when that will be, we must act quickly. Hera will run affairs; I will not be disturbed."

The King beckoned Hermes to join him and they stood up, leaving the room quickly. The rest of the room looked to Hera who sat up straighter before pushing herself up into a standing position. She walked slowly over to Aphrodite and slowly, Hera put out a hand to place on the side of her face. The two stared at each other for a few seconds before Hera pulled the goddess into a hug. Aphrodite didn't hesitate wrapping her arms around her and two, without tears or words, hugged each other tightly.

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Almost there, guys! Sorry for the delay!


	46. Chapter 45: End

The world couldn't stay in the blackness of Nyx's embrace for very long. Life had to continue, no matter how long her grieving process was or however long it would take Gaia to forgive her greedy children. The tensions amongst the immortal world had been high, for the dawn after this night would mean more to everyone than it ever had before. It was not a symbolic beginning, but a true change for all living creatures. Zeus pressured Hermes to finish off his speech and when it was prepared, he flew through the thickness of the night by the grace of Erebus to lift the weight of mourning. The messenger god was all too relieved when it took very little to convince the primordial goddesses.

Hermes then took his leave to Rhea and the remaining mortals, his heart beating with the anticipation of numbers; he had no concept of how many mortals had survived their power struggle. As he walked the muddy earth, Rhea was there to greet him with a friendly smile that warmed his nervous stomach. She opened her arms and without thinking, he collapsed into her embrace and she hugged him tightly. It was then he realized she hadn't seen anyone since before the battle and suddenly his grip tightened, realizing she had no idea of the losses they suffered. As if his actions told her everything, she shushed softly before he could feel the pain of their loss again and she kissed his forehead.

"All roads lead us through pain," she told him, lifting his chin up to look at her and her smile widened. "Pain is a feeling you have before you heal and grow stronger. This is a lesson everyone must learn …even us."

"Of course," he replied quietly, lowering his head. "I'm ashamed to feel more for our small loss in comparison to what the mortals have lost."

"No," Rhea shook her head as she turned over her shoulder, looking onto the camp site as the dawn began to break. "No need to pity them, for they should pity us. We feel only a fraction of what they do because they know they have such a short time to feel it. They burn stronger and brighter than we could ever hope."

Hermes furrowed his brows, wondering if Rhea could truly mean that after everything she had been through, but the dawn was quickly catching everyone's eye. He had little time to get their attention, for beginning anew meant work. Rhea nodded to him, motioning to a small hill that seemed to perfectly align with the field of tents and makeshift homes. He rushed to the top with great ease, galloping up and appearing with the sun behind him like rays of golden hope. Many mortals immediately took to his alluring presence, while others were ushered by Rhea and assured of their security. The god was immediately dismayed when Rhea gave him the sign to go ahead and he realized how few were left. He could feel his face grow concerned and stiff as he stared on, staring to count in his head but he closed his eyes before he could further injure himself.

"To address so few of you today was a path forged by many betrayals and lies," he began with his voice puncturing the silence with calm security. "A lineage of cooperative hubris and deceit from the very foundation of the immortal world. But blame for the events leading to this day lays on all of us on Olympus, and those here on Earth as well. I realize there is much to be explained to you – a tradition we gods have rarely followed. But we see now that without liaisons, a consistent cycle of communication between the mortal world and us, we deviate from what matters. Consequentially, your relationship with me directly will evolve from this point on: I am Hermes, messenger to the gods and herald of Zeus' word. Whether you know our names from myths, or find us strangers, it matters not for you will come to know us as we are and not by the stories of our shadows.

"Ever since creation, there has been a mystical nature between immortals and mortals. You have known it since your first ancestors and you have always striven to explain it. It had been called many names: mysticism, energy, all-mighty nature, Chaos, Brahman, Itzamná, and so on. It is the one that set our world into place. Mortals had come to see this as a divine goal, something or someone to reach out to and hope for. We answered your calls instead, for no voice has ever answered your prayers but ours; the one, as I have come to call it, does not respond.

"But we were limited by the very mystical presence that drew you to us; we were separated from your world by a sort of veil, preventing us from interacting with you directly or hearing you as clearly as you would think. It left the mortal world to write the answers to their questions, fabricating images of us within their culture, guessing at our natures. It wasn't until the early Grecians that someone strove to find us, seeking out the answer instead of creating one. It was then, nearly three thousand years ago, that the ancient Grecian philosophers and priests tapped into another dimension by way of the oracle ritual. By directly contacting the prophetic gods, your ancestors ripped open the barrier between us and had successfully gained our attention.

"Without a division between our worlds, we were drawn intimately closer to each other. We were able to interact with you now directly, instead of through the means of our prowess. We could communicate, empower and punish those we saw fit. In turn, you mortals were able to contact us directly, too; we heard prayers like whispers now and the temples acted like amplifiers of your words. Our vanity kept us in Greece where our names were whole and our stories more accurate, but it did not mean our reach was limited. We heard the prayers from every tribe, civilization or isolated mortal and we could feel their pain or joy despite our negligence. It was this reason that we hated the Grecians as much as we loved them; we were harder on them than pleasant, for we blamed every generation for the first – the one that had created this load to bear. And such malice and cruelty had not gone unnoticed.

"It is here this tale becomes important and crucial for you: the primordial gods, the old ones that have been here since creation, took pity on the Grecians. They had bypassed the barrier all along, able to come and go, communicate and live amongst the mortals far longer than we had and they had grown accustomed to it. And they saw a world in which you killed each other to be a better fate than that which we dealt unto you. We were plagued with exhaustion, each falling prey to a long sleep and leaving Earth to continue on without us. Without our guiding hands, the nymphs fell into hiding, fantastical creatures were hunted to extinction and the mortals were left to gather the pieces of religion with no answer in sight. The ancient gods had abandoned the mortal world, or so it seemed, and the rest of your history has been forged by your own hands and doing.

"Over the passed few centuries, the collective you have unknowingly turned your backs on your savior and protector. She is all that is around you, all that you stand on and would claim as your own: we call her Gaia, but you would know her better as Mother Earth. Your overpopulation has starved her of natural fertility and abused the resources provided. As she is beyond our own understanding of immortality, all of us have foolishly come to believe she is also beyond physical pain and suffering. She isolated herself from those who could help her and slowly she was weakened, every so often crying out in the form of an earthquake or eruption. But it was never enough. In desperation, she saw nowhere to turn but to us, sleeping soundly through her pleas. And by the command of Zeus, we punished you in her name.

"This world, as you know it, has passed and the concepts of our own have been transformed. Both you and us must adjust to a new kind of living. We must become neighbors and share this world as it should have been from the beginning," Hermes paused in his speech, his eyes rolling over the various faces that hailed from different areas of the world. He looked down onto the ground and stepped down into their ranks, reaching his hand out and touching them. Some retreated at first, fearing him and the sensation he brought but when the realization of his soothing presence struck, the crowds began to envelope him. It took hours for him to work through the crowds, touching each person that would accept him and he came out on the right side to see Rhea, holding the first newborn mortal of the new era. When he was close enough, he placed a hand on the baby's head and placed a soft kiss on its forehead.

"I will find a way to make you proud of this world," he said to the small child. "I promise."

**END**.

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Thank you so much for following me through this hefty story! I appreciate all the comments, reviews and suggestions I have received along the way; they have been very important to me. I have already begun rewriting the story, fixing the early chapters that aren't too impressive and going over the many grammar errors many of you noticed. ;) I am unsure if I will repost the rewrite or try to submit it for publication, but I will keep you guys updated! Also, happy new year!


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